Teen Titans: Revolutions
by iamlordi
Summary: Sorry for the crappy first chapters! It's gotten much better. :D Can Hiela succeed, and even if she can, can she put her forgotten past behind her?
1. Chapter 1

Teen Titans: Revolution

Chapter 1: Entrances.

**Section 1- Flare's Entrance**

A dark, flame-clad girl emerged from the dark depths of Gothem Cities' subways. Her black, stiletto shoes clicked along the empty, dark hallway as she made her way up towards the staircase, grasping a small duffel bag and rolling a suitcase behind her.

She sighed as she finally ascended the last step, rising into the crisp, clean air of Jump City. Compared to Jump City, Gothem was a rat-hole, she realized, dropping her duffel to stretch out. A few people heading downstairs into the subway gawked at her, her fiery outfit striking awe in their very soul, for ever since the departure of their beloved Teen Titans years ago, their small, yet violent, city hadn't seen such disturbances.

Flare hitched up the strap of the duffel and continued forward, staring at the ground to avoid further stares. Though everyone had heard of the new Titans, they didn't know what to expect. Flare didn't mind the attention; she just didn't like the stares. They unnerved her, and that was unsettling. She had to be in control of any situation, or else she felt… well, out of control, confused, and lost. Flare passed by the pier, and looked out at the watery expanse that separated her from the Titans Tower; currently under renovation. She smiled slightly at the sight of the repaired building: it was causing fear in the heart of all villains throughout Jump City. Soon, their reach would be spread, though, she though, promising that she'd stop crime as far away as she mortally could.

Flare held her hand out, palm facing the water. She felt the water vapor slither around her hand as heat pooled down beneath the surface of the bay. Flare clenched her hand into a fist, then pulled up, her eyes pooling into orange flames for a moment. In front of her appeared a bridge of lava, cooling slowly as she opened her fist. She took a step onto the lava, and then continued to cause more to rise before her. The rest behind her fell harmlessly back into the Earth.

Flare looked back behind her when she was more than half way at the Tower. The long space in between her in the land behind her acted as a separating symbol. _'No turning back now'_ she thought, picking up her pace as she finished the route to the island. Flare shifted the weight of her duffel and her suitcase, holding both up above her shoulders so they wouldn't be burned to a crisp in the lava's flow.

Finally, from what seemed like an eternity, Flare stepped out of the dangerous bay, her eyes resuming their natural color, and dropped the bags in a heap beside her. "Ugh, and to think I'm going to be enduring 24/7 training in a few hours…" She whispered, running her hand through her multi-colored hair. A red strand blew past her eyes, obscuring her vision. Flare brushed it away, tucking her hair behind her ear. "Here goes nothing…"She added, turning around, picking her bags up, and stepping onto the huge Tower's steps.

**Section 2- Hiela**

Hiela, a small, blue bag clutched in her gloved hand, shivered in nervousness as she crossed the street of Jump City. Hiela found herself smirking at the irony; the fact that_ she _was shivering. Hiela looked down at her gloved hands again for the third time that day. She created a small ice-sculpture of the Tower, and yet again crushed it in both fists. She kept herself entertained to avoid the many glances and shivers she was acquiring every time she walked near people.

Her blue skirt was ruffled from the long ride from her home to Jump City. She couldn't wait to start a new life here, to help people and use her powers for something useful. Not only that, this would get respect from people. She ruefully noticed that she wanted to become known and blushed slightly, wiping the thought from her head. _'I'm here to help. Nothing more.'_

In shock, she realized that there was a large crowd forming behind her. Everyone in that specific crowd was holding microphones and cameras, preparing their flash and adjusting last minute edits on their looks before they would broadcast. Hiela's eyes widened in fear, the repulsive thought of being on TV frightening her terribly.

Hiela did what any super hero with ice-wielding powers would do. Blasting some ice into the air, she jumped on as swiftly and as elegantly as possible, not wanting a rough landing to be caught on television and for the world to be ridiculing her as a klutz, and slid away on ice, going higher into the air until she was above the buildings, looking down at the gaping press below her. They struggled to aim their cameras at her. She gave them a shy wave before heading towards the Tower, ice appearing in front of her and melting into water behind her. She swiftly glided over the ice, a sigh of relief emitting from her.

She hadn't realized how constricted she had felt around everyone. By the time she'd helped put a few bums in prison, they should stop looking at her like an alien. The young teen caught sight of the Tower and skated faster, her excitement propelling her forward. She realized the ice was melting below her quickly. "Oh!" She squeaked, trying to grasp a thought that was rather aggravating. Finding nothing, the ice slowly started to melt into nothing but a rushing stream of water.

Hiela shook her head for letting her emotions get the better of her, and quickly jumped down onto one of the nearby buildings. Luckily she had made it to the pier, so now it was a matter of freezing the water in front of her so she could make it to the Tower. "Piece of cake." She whispered, smirking softly. Hiela used the thought of the press to create enough ice to slide down off the building, and then ran toward the end of the peer. Momentarily peeking around, she jumped over, and then froze the surface of the water around her. Skating along yet again, she focused on reaching the island. Many thoughts ran through her mind, as to which room she would want. She couldn't make up her mind. Before she knew it, she was at the Tower, her case clutched loosely in her hand. She walked up to the massive doors, staring at a figure leaning against the wall.

"Hello?" She asked carefully, her eyes brightening blue. The girl dressed in flames looked up. "Yo." She said calmly, smiling. "I tried getting in. I guess our leader hasn't finished touching up, though. Door's locked." She added, shrugging hopelessly.

"Oh…" Hiela didn't know what else to say, and started nervously pulling at her skirt. "… I'm Flare," Offered the girl in flames. Hiela nodded, grinning sheepishly. "Hiela." She merely said. Flare nodded then continued to lounge on the wall, waiting for the 'leader' to open the door. Hiela set her bags down, and sat down against the wall as well, tucking her knees under her chin, sighing.

'_So far, pretty good…'_ She thought.

**Section 3- Tempest**

Tempest rolled over on the fluffy pillow of a cloud. She sighed, toying with her earrings as she drifted over most of Jump City. Every once in a while, a sky scraper would get in her way. She lazily jumped off the cloud, landed on the roof of the building, and would conjure another cloud to continue her way.

She giggled to herself at the small croud she had attracted earlier that morning near the outskirts of Jump City. She had been drawing in the cloud she was floating in, causing a large "9" shape to form. She sat in the circle of the nine, looking down at the people who stared up at her in utter shock. "She's going to fall!" Screeched an old woman, sobbing. A teenager snickered and muttered, "Cloud nine. Nice." Tempest shook her head and covered herself up with the fluffy material of the cloud and continued on her way.

It's not like she normally traveled like this, she reminded herself. It was just… well; there were a lot of reporters, and only a little time. She didn't want to get caught in one of their mobs. It was boring enough traveling on a cloud, but knowing that overwhelming excitement lay only just a few miles away made Tempest restless.

Not to mention that, but their leader would be the descendent of Robin. Tempest remembered searching through newspapers and stumbling upon clippings of the boy-wonder, and almost swooning in her seat. Though the clippings were old, Tempest was sure Robin never stopped looking so good. Lucky Starfire, she thought. Starfire ended up settling down with the boy wonder, not to anybody's surprise. The two would have died without each other.

Tempest wondered if the new leader would look as handsome. Probably more so, seeing that Starfire was the mother. Starfire was a very lovely woman, so two beautiful people would result in one heck of a looking teen. Tempest did a double take on his age. He was turning 16 in August, and it was currently June. 'Not to big an age difference…' she thought, smirking.

Tempest suddenly sat up straight. She was getting way ahead of herself. She felt herself blush as she pushed away any thought about her amazingly handsome leader. She had to focus on how different this lifestyle would be from her old one, and be prepared to accustom herself to getting up the very second the city needed the Titans. Tempest looked down and noticed she was floating over the bay of the Tower.

Tempest wondered what this life would be like. She hadn't even met her teammates. All she got was a letter, an insignia of Robin on the top right corner, and an invitation to Titans Tower for a small meeting. She had no idea how her location had managed to be found, but she was going. Nothing on Earth could stop her. And luckily for her, nothing on Earth had. She had arrived at Jump City.

And now she felt like she was going to be sick. Tempest had never felt more nervous in her life until a sudden moment, the emotion clamped down on her like the jaws of a shark. She looked down at the entrance, and slowly rolled off the cloud onto one lower and closer to the ground. She saw two figures jump at her sudden appearance. Tempest descended, and then continued walking towards the door. She looked up, and a smaller cloud came down, carrying her two suitcases.

Tempest waved wearily at the two girls staring at her, both offering bored smiles. "So, we're locked out?" She asked, analyzing the situation. "Rude, isn't it? I mean- we're guests." Flare sighed, closing her eyes in aggravation. Tempest nodded, looking at Hiela, who introduced herself. "Hello, nonetheless. I'm Hiela." Tempest nodded, smiling. "I'm Tempest." She looked at Flare, expecting her to also contribute her name. Flare caught her gaze and looked around. "Oh? Me? I'm Flare." She replied, waving her hand. Tempest dumped her suitcases on the floor beside Flare's and Hiela's, then sat in between them. "Okay then, now that we all know each other…"

**Section 4- Changeling**

A young, green-skinned teenager trotted down the street. He whistled a merry tune while pulling a dark purple suitcase behind him. He was instantly recognized as Beast Boy, the old Teen Titan. In fact, three girls, aging from ten to fourteen, ran up to him squealing.

"Beast Boy! My, you've gotten young!" cried the middle one, her hand grasping his free one. Changeling backed up, annoyed. "I'm not Beast Boy, girls." He said, narrowing his eyes a bit. "I am the one and only Changeling! … also known as BB's kid." He groaned the last part quietly, watching the girls calm down. "Oh…" the oldest one started muttering something about the time, then slowly walked away, pulling the youngest away with her.

"Well… uh, good luck being a Titan Bea-Changeling," offered the middle girl, waving sheepishly. Changeling shrugged, continuing past the pizza parlor. So far, he didn't like not being known at all. In his old City, he was his father's sidekick, and reporters flocked to him by the hundreds. So far, not even the ladies admired him; instead they saw his father in his stead. Changeling sighed as he looked up at the Tower. The fact was that he didn't want to be here.

His father had made him answer the stupid letter sent by Robin's son, and agree to the stupid job of becoming Jump City's defender. Changeling wondered how Robin's child would be; hopefully not as uptight or obsessive as Robin himself. Last time Robin had visited, he'd been caught up in talking to Changeling's dad about a new villain that kept slipping through his and Starfire's fingers.

Changeling held his head up high, looking defiantly at the Titans Tower. He wondered what his mother would be doing now. Hopefully she had come back from Azerath with his older brother and younger sister by now. His luggage got caught in a crack, causing Changeling to lurch forward. "Whoops." He muttered, yanking the case forward. He looked up at the Tower, staring at it from the beach.

Changeling dropped the luggage, and glanced around. He wasn't used to transforming out in the open even though he'd been crime fighting with his dad for a while now. Usually, it was dark and they were alone. Today, it was out in the open, and he was surrounded by people. Changeling let out a low caw, then his transformation started. His arms became wings, and his body shortened into that of an eagle. Grasping his suitcase as quickly as possible, he took off into the sky towards Titans Tower. He glanced back, catching the glances of the beach-goers staring up at him, their jaw slack and their eyes wide. Changeling smirked as much as he could with a beak, and then continued to the Tower.

Upon arrival, he noticed three more teenage girls standing in front of the door. Changeling aimed for the ground, transformed back in the air, and flipped to his feet. The three girls were gaping at him, all standing up straight. The girl in blue gasped slightly, then shook her head. "Oh! You must be the shape-shifter! My name is Hiela." She commented nervously, smiling sheepishly. The girl with silver hair smiled and waved, "My name is Tempest." Changeling looked at the girl in flames, and she nodded in his direction. "I'm Flare." She said, offering a tired smile.

He looked at the pile of luggage beside the girls and deposited his beside theirs. "My name is Changeling. It's great to meet you guys… Wanna hear a joke?"

**Section 5- Robin**

Robin paced in front of the huge window of Titans Tower. He stared down at the new Titans, nervousness eating away at him. They still weren't official members of this team. He wondered if they'd stay after he went through the amount of villains there were in this town; the sheer numbers may scare them away. Robin clasped his hands behind his back, his eyes narrowed behind his mask.

With minor changes, Robin realized that he was very much like his father, Nightwing, when he was Robin. Nightwing had offered his costume to his son, as well as his title. Ryand'r, his true Tameranian name, accepted them all with a flourish. He couldn't wait to become Robin, and sent the costume for a few changes in color. He got darker colors, and a mask that included a small tip at his nose, giving the appearance of Nightwing's mask.

Robin shook his head. Now wasn't the time to be thinking of his appearance. He had to prepare for his team. He turned back around, going over the small papers that had maps of the Tower, lists of villains, and even name tags. He went over the names of the Titans, then looked outside, matching the names up with most of the Titans except for the one that was missing.

He quickly got bored, and noticed the possible Titans were getting restless. The girl in fire was causing rifts of flames to burst out of the water from the bay, the girl in blue was freezing the water where the fire entered, the boy was looking through his suitcase for the hundredth time, and the girl with silver hair was playing with clouds in her hands. He stared at them for a moment, and then counted the Titans. One was still missing. Not too shocking; after all, the Titan was from Azerath. Raven herself had recommended him to Nightwing, who therefore recommended him to Ryand'r.

Robin started heading towards the staircase. _'This kid from Azerath better put it in high gear because I'm not waiting.'_ Robin thought, opening the door. He wondered how the atmosphere in the tower would be with three boys and three girls. Nightwing had already told him how important it was not to follow his footsteps and DEFENTLY not fall in love with a teammate. He'd have to strictly enforce that rule around here…

Robin stepped off the last step, then continued towards the door. He was going to wait ten more minutes before letting them in.

**Section 6- Roman**

"Roman, if you don't get yourself to Earth in two minutes, I'll ship you there myself! Why, Raven herself came here, auditioning, and she picked you out of a hundred people! And you're gracing her by being late!"

Roman groaned, clipping his black cape into place with its dark gold clasp. His Dark Arts teacher was a pain in the neck when it came to … anything. He looked at the bag he was to take to the Tower, filled with only necessities. Any larger and he'd arrive at the Tower powerless. He still didn't understand why Raven had chosen him out of a hundred people when he hadn't even shown her his power yet. In fact-

"ROMAN! Get your head out of the clouds and into that portal!" screeched the teacher again. "I'll leave when I'm ready." Roman returned, his voice steady and calm. He reached down under the small cot that was his bed to grasp his boots. Living at the school proved a pain; no privacy whatsoever. But being only 16, he couldn't live without a guardian. And without parents, along with his sour attitude to anybody who could be a potential adopter, he had to stay at the school.

Shoving the book of Azar into his pack, he took a final glance around his room. He'd miss the quiet, loneliness; moving onto a team meant cooperating with people. He'd had more than enough visions of his teammates annoying him to death, appearing at his door more than once to join them in some silly game or activity. Visions of constant training and alarms also warned him of the harshness of being a Titan; but the visions had already _had_ him as a Titan. He wasn't going to back down now.

Roman concentrated all his energy to Jump City on Earth. A loud tear was heard, like the ripping apart of a piece of clothing as a rift in the dimensions appeared. "Very nicely formed, Roman, the rift looks perfect. We'll definitely miss you here." His teacher smiled slightly at him, then turned and closed the door to the room. Roman couldn't help but scowl; they probably wouldn't even notice his departure.

Roman heard the click that signified the doors' lock. Opening his eyes, he stepped into the portal, concentrated on the island of Titans Tower. He felt his power being sapped as the portal to the Tower opened. He closed the portal behind him, giving him the little boost he needed to complete the travel to the Tower. He gasped slightly as he was forced out, his black-tinted eyes squeezing shut. He looked up and saw everyone that was already at the door rush to him, their eyes wide in shock.

"Tempest, I just think he beat your arrival on the clouds by a mile," Flare said, smirking. Roman looked up into the face of a young, green skinned boy, who in turn, smiled. "I kinda missed it, though, but this kid came through a rift! That's impressive." The boy held his hand out, glancing behind him at the silver haired girl. "The name's Changeling." He said proudly, standing up straight.

Roman scoffed and stood up himself, looking at the other teenagers surrounding him. He wondered if in fact they really were swaying, or if it was just him. "Dizzy…"He murmured, heading towards the wall of the Tower. "Dizzy? That's a really exotic name…" Changeling smirked again, causing a small giggle to erupt from Hiela and Tempest.

The girl in silver hair nudged Changeling. "He's obviously tired. Give it a rest, will you?" She muttered, trying hard not to laugh at Changeling's antics. "Maybe we should introduce ourselves." She added, looking in Roman's direction. "I'm Tempest." She continued. Roman shrugged, glaring at particularly nothing. Flare sat beside him, pointing at Hiela. "She is Hiela. I'm Flare. And you're very aggravated. Why?" She asked, reading his expression.

"I'm not aggravated." He objected, staring down at her. Flare crossed her arms, nodding. "Okay. Why are you not aggravated?" Roman stared at her, confused for a moment. "Because… there is no reason to be…" he said, his voice rising in a question. Flare shook her head, her red and black hair brushing him.

"Wrong. We're all aggravated because someone is standing on the other side of this door and he isn't letting us in." Flare corrected, her eyes closing. "Isn't that right, Tempest?"

Tempest shrugged, giggling slightly. "I'm sure the wait will be worth it." Flare smirked slightly, "You love-sick fool." Hiela shook her head, smiling at their childish behaviors. She walked to the door, tapping it softly. A small click was heard, and the door was pulled open.

"I can't believe this. All we had to do was _knock_? We've been sitting here, roasting in the sun, while all we had to do was _knock_? Hiela, I'm astounded by your greatness." Changeling said, dramatically moving toward his bag. "Please, let me get your bags, your greatness." Hiela started laughing, shaking her head at him. "No, I've got it." She blushed, running towards the pile of bags.

Flare stood up, looking down at the teen with a tiny skull etched on his black shirt beside her. "C'mon, Pessimist, let's go." She snatched her bags from the ground and looked at Tempest. "Try not to drool when we see _you-know-who_." She teased, smiling. Tempest winked slyly and, using a mellow, trance-like tone, she said, "Oh, but it's him that'll have to hold back his drool."

Flare smirked, and Hiela hid her grin. Changeling had already fled inside to escape the Jump City summer heat, and Roman was stepping inside the threshold. He glanced behind him at the three girls and smirked, a boyish thought smacking him in the face.

'_I'm in a Tower with three sexy girls. What's not to love?_'

Roman shoved the thought from his mind, clearing his emotions and trying hard to not break anything as his cheeks flushed a dull pink. "Oh-la-la, lookie at that, Tempest. You already got the Pessimist to blush." Cooed Flare, her eyes sparkling as she teased.

Roman scoffed, entering the Tower in a huff. Tempest, Flare and Hiela followed him into the large T, curiosity causing them to forget about the three handsome roommates. The five newly recruited Titans didn't expect to see the inside of the Tower set up so regally, and all gasped as they stared up into the high ceiling. A plush, red carpet led the way to the true entrance of the Tower, which would lead them to the living room. The pathway was lined with chairs or tables, and the walls had plaques and clippings announcing the incredible tasks the Titans had done before. The new Titans stared up- and up- at the walls lined with congratulations for saving the world and whatnots.

'How can we possibly top that?' Hiela thought, a worried expression crossing her face. Changeling was the only one to speak this out loud, and even he said it in a hushed whisper: "Can we ever be as good as they were?"

"Of course we can. And we'll be a hundred thousand times better." Ryand'r's voice filled the opening, and there he stood, elegantly dressed in a newer, less Christmas-tree like version of Robin. Tempest, along with Hiela and Flare, swooned at him, their eyes widening and their jaws slacking.

"With you we can do _aaaaanything_." Tempest cooed accidentally, never realizing the words had actually left her mouth. Robin's mask lifted a bit in amusement, followed by a quick cough and a stern nod.

"We sure will try." He mumbled. The new leader motioned them to follow him. "C'mon, we'll talk in the living room.

"Pfft, How expected. They see a guy waltz in wearing spandex and they start drooling." Changeling nudged Roman, watching him to see if he'd earned a laugh. Roman's eyes twinkled in suppressed laughter, but his face was kept emotionless as he looked the girls over.

Flare, Hiela and Tempest all reared on the two boys, their faces flushed in anger. "What did you say!" They yelped in unison. Roman, pointing at Changeling, quickly scurried after Robin, wondering what the girls would do to get even.

Changeling was left behind to face their combined fury until Robin stopped them. "You're allowed to harass your roommates _after_ 11 p.m. From 1 a.m. to 11 p.m., though, please hesitate to hurt them." Roman and Robin glanced at each other, a knowing glance passing between them. The girls should calm down by then.

Little did they know, the three little devils had already started drawing up a plan. They waltzed to the elevator, smirking and exchanging dark whispers. Roman read their auras, all a light brown, signifying mischief. He looked down at Changeling. "Be ready for anything tonight."

Changeling only paled and nodded knowingly. "Yo, Robin-dude, the new boy-blunder, can my room be… uh, 'concealed' from public eyes?"


	2. Chapter 2

Teen Titans: Revolution

Chapter 2- Welcome to Hell

The new Teen Titans took a seat at the round couch, all five of them looking up at their new leader. Their luggage was placed along the back wall, ready to be received and unpacked.

At the moment, the boys sat on one side of the seat, Changeling cowering beside Roman as the girls continued to plot against him. Roman was sitting in between Changeling and Hiela, shivering every once in a while when Hiela literally froze up from her nervousness. He leaned forward a bit, giving Changeling view to all three annoyed girls. Tempest sat beside Hiela, and beside her sat Flare. All three turned their gaze on him as Roman moved. Changeling sank down onto his seat.

"Hey, mind moving back just a little, dude?" Changeling begged Roman, tugging on his cape. Roman smirked, and leaned back in his seat. Robin watched this shaking his head in disappointment. He turned to the girls accusingly, his mask narrowing. The three girls snapped their heads towards him, bringing their attention fully to their leader. Tempest even went as far as addressing him, "Yes, sir?"

Robin glared at them for a while, then looked back at Changeling. "If he is harmed or taunted in any way, then I'll have to wake all three of you up early for harsh training." He simply said, then turned around to organize his papers. Flare, Hiela and Tempest all looked at his back, stunned. Changeling let out a sigh of relief, glancing at the three girls. Flare looked at the green skinned teenager and looked back at Tempest and Hiela.

"I think I can manage a little training, don't you?" She whispered. Hiela and Tempest smirked, but shook their heads. Sighing in defeat, all three girls leaned back into their seat. Roman glanced beside him and took in their auras, a bleak gray of disappointment.

Robin turned to his team, demanding attention by simply staring at them. Each of them looked up, eager to start off.

"Let me start with warning you that being a Titan will not be easy. Not in the least way; you'll be called on during late hours of the night and early hours of the morning, and all throughout the daytime. You're going to have to cooperate with me entirely, and no going solo," Robin seemed to stare at Roman during this, as if accusing him of being a problem. Roman stared back at him, his emotion-affected powers restricting him from blurting out that he was a great at joint effort.

"If you want to leave, do it now. I don't want you to come to me crying after this has gotten tough. I'm going to tell you now, this will get tough. It won't be easy. And as you walked to the Tower, I'm sure you saw how bad Jump City has gotten in the few years the old Titans weren't around. We are going to be the ones redeeming the city of its evil. And that means we're going to get kicked around. A lot. Anyone _can't_ deal with that?" He asked, looking each of the potential Titans in the face. Flare scoffed, crossing her arms.

"If you're trying to intimidate any of us, I can assure you that you're not scaring anybody. I'm guessing we've all been in tough situations, and obviously we've gotten out of them alive. Just tell us what to do and we'll try to do it, won't we?" She blurted, looking back at the Titans.

Hiela, Tempest and Changeling all stared at her, amazed. Flare's hand flew to her mouth in surprise, her eyes widening. "Whoops. Sorry." She added through her hand, a deep blush coming to her tanned cheeks. Roman smirked, crossing his arms and leaning back in his seat. Robin stared at Flare for a moment, then shook his head.

"Meet me outside after this meeting is over if you still want to be a Titan. Anyway, your rooms are marked on this map," He reached behind him to grasp a piece of paper. While his back was turned, Flare stuck her tongue out at him, a childish gesture, but she was still smoking from the incident.

Literally. Tempest scooted away to avoid the heat, giggling softly at the display of childish rebellion. Robin turned back, glaring at the two girls who smiled back sweetly at him. He held up the papers, and handed them to Changeling.

"Find the one with your name on it, and then pass the rest on. This will show you where your room is. It also has a schedule of your next training rally." He paused for a moment as if gathering his bearings. Smiling, he shrugged. "Well, if you want to stay, go to your rooms, and settle in. If you don't, good bye then. Flare, I'll see you outside." He said. With that, he turned and walked into the elevator, leaving the new Titans alone.

Flare stood up, glancing down at her map. "Does anybody mind taking my stuff to my room? She asked, crunching up the paper in her hand. Flare looked behind her at the new Titans. Tempest approached her, taking the paper from her hand. "I'll do it. And please, don't kill Robin. Enjoy the one on one." Tempest said, winking. Flare rolled her eyes, trying to stop a grin from appearing on her face.

"Seriously, I'm sorry. Robin's glare just got to me though… I couldn't stand it." She grumbled, a blush appearing on her face again. The Titans all looked at each other before shrugging and getting off the couch. Roman stood up and took his bag, leaving without a further word. Hiela and Changeling examined each others' maps before taking their bags and leaving, Changeling making jokes that were, to Hiela, hilarious.

Tempest picked up her bags along with Flare's, then headed out the door. Flare walked to the door Robin had used, sighing, and proceeded to open it. The elevator swished open, but when she went to press the ground floor button, she noticed a note taped to it.

'_Use the stairs'_ it said, Robin's insignia on the bottom right corner. Flare sighed again, and looked around the room. _"Now to find the stairs…"_ She thought, opening the four doors leaving the main room. Finding the stairs at the fourth door, she continued down them, skipping three steps at a time. Finally, panting, tired, and annoyed, she made it to the entrance of the Tower, and stomped outside. Robin waited for her, seated at the control panel of some machine.

"You'll be the first to test out the course." He said, motioning to the starting line. "Go get in position." He commanded. Flare nodded, keeping her mouth shut and trying to calm her breathing. The run down the stairs had done what Robin had hoped; it had worn her out. Robin flipped a switch on the board, and a timer appeared on the opposite side of the large, box-like machine.

Robin looked at the door and saw the other Titans coming out one by one. Flare stared at them, her face going pale with embarrassment. "You can't be serious. They'll be watching!" She cried, straightening from her ready position. Robin nodded at her, then addressed the Titans, pointing to where they were to be seated.

Hiela looked sympathetically at Flare. She quickly walked up to her, eager to tell her of how they were told of the event. "Robin programmed our new communicators. When you open them, it says 'practice immediately following the first reception. So just to let you know you're not _really_ in trouble. It was planned, but you just managed to get caught in the spotlight." Hiela said, smiling. Flare held her head in her hands, groaning.

"I don't want to do this in front of everyone…" She moaned, looking up at Hiela. Before she could reply, Robin called to her, commanding her to sit. "Flare, your countdown starts in five seconds." He reminded, clicking buttons on the board.

Flare sighed, and leaned forward, ready to run, her eyes starting to flame as she awakened her power. "GO!" Robin's voice sounded far away as she took off, her agile, sure steps avoiding the many disk-bombs that were blown at her.

A barrage of spears was thrown at her from in front. Flare held her hands out, skidding to a stop, and closed her hands into fists. The spears imploded, bursting into little flames that drifted into the dirt. Flare continued to run as fast as she could.

Out of the ground came large poles that flew up ten feet into the air. Flare snatched a hold of one of them, rising into the air with them, then pulled her hand up through the air. In front of her appeared a stream of lava that erupted from the ground with such heat that the other Titans had to shield themselves slightly. Flare burned the rest of the poles in front of her, and jumped off the one she was standing on and landed on the lava, which she made harden until it became a bridge. Panting, she made her way towards the finish line.

Robin frowned and clicked one of the blue buttons. Flare was shocked when a pool appeared in front of her, full of ice cold water. She gasped as she fell in, unable to stop, the cold water causing her powers to freeze up. She screamed in agony as the shock went up through her. Flare swam desperately to the pool side, and clawed her way up, gasping. She crawled out of the water and stood up dizzily, stumbling over the finish line. The clock stopped, and Flare fell to the ground, closing her eyes. She shivered violently, and tried wrapping her arms around her to warm herself.

"Now you see where you have to improve." Robin called to her. Flare couldn't bring herself to build up enough energy to move. Her wet clothes stuck to her, and like a leech they sucked out her vitality. Changeling stood up and started walking towards her. He turned around and faced Robin, looking back at Flare nervously.

"Dude, I don't think that was a very good idea. Doesn't water douse fire? Wouldn't that be what you are doing right now? _Killing_ her?" He asked, his eyes narrowing. Robin leaned forward and picked up a towel, and headed towards his teammate. Tempest and Hiela looked at each other before jumping to their feet and running towards her as well.

"Oh! You're truly something else, boy wonder!" Flare hissed, her teeth chattering. She snatched the towel from him, wrapping herself inside it tightly. To her surprise, it felt warm. She pulled of her wet arm sleeves, shivering. Robin kneeled down beside her. "You're alive, aren't you? That means you're somewhat resilient to water." He concluded. Flare gaped at him, still shivering.

"What it means is that I managed to get out of the water before I died!" She coughed, shaking herself to try to get out of the moisture. Robin shook his head. "We'll work on it." He told her, helping her to her feet. Flare pulled away from him, stumbling towards the door of the Tower. "Inconsiderate jerk." She whispered, slamming the door behind her. Robin looked back at the other Titans standing around him, then at Roman who was also standing, but had stayed by the controls. He looked up at the time which read two minutes and four seconds.

"Okay, who's going next?" He asked. Tempest, Hiela and Changeling all took a step back. Their faces paled in horror, cringing at the thought of their strongest weaknesses going against them.

"Will we have to do what she did? I don't want to walk into fire, Robin." Hiela said, crossing her arms bravely. Tempest, standing behind her, nodded fiercely.

Robin stepped closer, and Hiela took two steps back. "You're going to have to do this at one point or time. And you're going to do it at or below two minutes and four seconds. Understood?" Robin asked. Tempest shook her head.

"You're trying to kill us, not train us!" She exclaimed, her eyes wide with fear.

"I'm trying to keep you safe all safe, Titans! If I knew that Flare's weakness was cold water, then wouldn't others- villains maybe- realize it too? Wouldn't they exploit it with more power? I'm trying to prepare you for this." He snapped. His remark brought silence against the team. All of them waited for someone to volunteer so they could be spared the harsh trial.

"I'll go." Hiela whispered, walking to the starting line. Robin nodded and walked back to the controls, while Tempest and Changeling trudged after him, their heads hung. Roman leaned against the control panel, thinking over what his weakness could be. "Loss of concentration." Robin answered. Roman nearly fell off the control board, surprised beyond recognition. "I can read your thoughts through the board. I managed to get some history on all of you, and I analyzed all your weaknesses." Robin continued explaining, now including Tempest and Changeling in the conversation. "Changeling, your weakness would be your inability to change due to injury. Hiela's weakness is heat, and your weakness, Tempest, is lack of enough wind power in the particular area. Not to mention lack of control." He added, stealing a glance at her. Tempest nodded, fully understanding.

As Robin prepared the countdown for Hiela, he looked at Roman. "Call Flare on her communicator and make sure she's okay for me, will you? I don't want to walk in and find her body somewhere." He said, his tone entirely serious.

Roman shook his head. "She's fine. I can feel her- She's in her room right now." Robin nodded, understanding, and clicked the countdown.

"Go, Hiela!" He yelled.

Hiela ran from the starting line quickly, freezing the bombs before they could explode in front of her. The bombs dropped to the ground, and Hiela ran through them, careful not to step on them. Robin turned a dial on the board, and flipped a switch. He looked up to inspect what would happen.

The disk bombs blew up, causing a fire to catch around Hiela. She gasped slightly, skidding to a stop as fire rose in front of her. Hiela looked around quickly, and then raised her hand level with her shoulder. For a second, nothing happened. Then, water from the bay rose up in a spiral and splashed on the fire, dousing it. Hiela was panting from all the heat, though to the other Titans wasn't very strong. She backed up while the water cooled the fire down. "You have to hurry, Hiela. You're at a minute fifty!" Robin told her. Hiela nodded and barged forward, onto the next obstacle. The poles rose into the air in front of her, the first one taking her up with it. Hiela froze the rest into place so they became a type of staircase, and ran down them. She started towards the finish line, looking back nervously. Robin flipped another switch and pressed a red button. Hiela sprinted towards the finish line, not wanting to endure another fire attack. Robin's machinery was faster, though, and two flames started spilling out in front of her.

Hiela's eyes became a dark blue, and ice settled over the flames. The ice melted, and became water, dousing the fire. While the flames were low, Hiela ran through them, squealing slightly when the fire billowed up around her.

"Time! Two minutes, eight seconds. Pretty good." Robin called to her, resetting the course. Hiela fled from the fiery finish line, panting as she settled down in her seat. She looked up at Robin, waiting dismissal. Robin looked down at her and nodded, then focused his attention on the other Titans.

"After you've completed your course, you can head up to your rooms. Or you could always stay and watch the others…" He said, stretching out. Robin yawned before looking back at the remaining Titans; Hiela had fled once he had finished speaking. "Who's going next?" He asked, looking directly at Changeling. Changeling scowled, raising his hand.

"That'll be my cue." He said, then transformed into a cheetah. He ran to the starting line, crouching low. Changeling had already planned out what he was going to try to do, and unless Robin found a way to stop his transformation in the end, he'd finish the track in a minute and fifty-four seconds, hands down.

Tempest scooted beside Robin, inspecting the board. "Want to learn how to manage it?" He asked, seeing her curiosity bloom. Roman shook his head, the obvious flirty question causing him to groan. Tempest, who had been pointing at buttons and asking questions, blushed furiously. She looked up at Robin who was explaining them with ease.

"May… maybe we- you- should start the track for Changeling." She said, blushing deeper. Robin nodded, blushing too, and looked down at the grass he was standing on.

"Right, of course." He replied, clicking the reset button on the timer. Changeling, annoyed at their lack of response to his many yells of being ready, shook his head.

"Oh no you don't. We'll start when I'm ready again." He commanded, stretching and yawning. Robin shook his head, rolling his eyes, but understood Changeling's annoyance. He tapped his fingers on the start button, but Changeling refused to get up to the starting line.

"Listen, Changeling, I'm sorry, but we have to get moving. Two people still have to do this course." Robin growled, running his hand through his hair in annoyance. Roman glanced at him, smirking. To all their surprise, his thought was received by the machine, and translated.

'_It's your fault for flirting with her.'_ The robotic voice sang out over the three titans, causing all of them to stare at the panel. Changeling's expert ears caught this too, and he burst out laughing. "Alright Robin, **now** I'm ready."

Robin and Tempest blushed, and Roman stared at the machine so viciously they thought it would implode. For a second, the machine started shaking, too. Robin refused to look at Roman or Tempest; instead he started the countdown for Changeling.

Robin muttered something about disabling the mind reading program until Roman's turn was up, and then pressed "go". Changeling, as a cheetah, zipped past the disk bombs easily, and jumped high into the air, rolling into a transformation where he became a turtle. When more bombs were thrown at him, they smacked against the hard shell and bounced off, exploding harmlessly a few feet away.

Changeling transformed into a cheetah again, preparing himself to jump onto the poles that were to rise in front of him. Robin noticed his prepared demeanor, and turned a dial. Instead of rising up, deep pits appeared in the ground, and Changeling, who had been ready to jump, slipped from the lack of support, and tumbled into a heap. His paw fell through one of the holes, and he felt it twist. He cried out, trying to transform into a bird. He couldn't complete the transformation due to the pressure on his leg, though, so he stayed as a cheetah. Changeling pulled his paw from the hole. He continued forward, limping slightly, and approached the finish line.

Robin had one more trick up his sleeve, though. Twisting a dial, and clicking the blue button he'd used on Flare, he watched as the same pool appeared, though shallower on one side. Changeling let out a low growl as he barged into the water, swimming lopsidedly, trying to keep his head above water. After a minute of swimming, he made it across. Panting now, he turned back into a human, and limped across the finish line.

"Zeus, Robin! Just because you're mad that you're flirty-goo-goo crap was caught doesn't mean you should take it out on me!" Changeling practically yelled. Robin smirked slightly, then looked at Roman.

"You can heal him, can't you? Once you do, get on the starting line." He commanded, resetting the timer. "That wasn't good at all, Changeling. Two minutes and fifty-four seconds? We'll have to work on that." He added, now resetting the course. He switched on the mind-reader device, centered it on Roman, and waited patiently.

Changeling lifted his leg slightly to Roman, who in turn kneeled and held his hand over the bruised ankle. Roman's eyes became black as his healing powers fixed the twisted bone. He stood up and nodded at Changeling.

"Just don't put too much pressure on it yet." He warned, then headed towards the starting line. Changeling nodded and, casting a glare at Robin, left to the Tower. Robin sighed, shaking his head.

"The team isn't going to be happy with me after this. I'm going to have to do something to make it up for them." He grumbled. Tempest touched his arm softly leaning forward to look into his masked eyes. She half-closed her eyes, seriousness filling her face.

"I realize that you are only trying to prepare us for what we're probably going to face. I think the others will see that soon, after they calm down a bit. Nobody likes their weaknesses exposed, especially so soon." She said, nodding. Robin nodded with her before looking expectantly at Roman.

"You ready, Roman?" He asked, initiating the countdown. Roman prepared himself to run, trying to focus his mind on the track, and not the mind-boggling machine that was about to be set upon him. "Go!"

Roman set off quickly, putting up a black shield against the disk bombs being flung at him. Robin enabled the mind reader, looking up at the poles about to rise at the same time. He typed in a message, clicked a green button, and waited to see what happened.

Robin had sent Roman a message, Roman realized this too late. The message told him, _"Move left! The poles are rising to the right!" _Roman saw the first pole rising to the left, and tried to stop, but his body had already gotten the message to move left. "Argh!" He blurted, slamming into the rising pole. He fell back, dizzy, but quickly got up. He stumbled forward, shaking his head. Regaining his stature, he zipped forward again, this time more aware for the messages.

Robin clicked a brown, blinking button, switching a dial to 'six'. He glanced up, then added another foot do the dial. In front of Roman, a seven foot crevice appeared. Roman muttered a few words of concentration, jumped up into the crevice, and fell in about half a foot. A second later he was rising up on a black panel, his eyes immersed in darkness as he concentrated.

Robin sent another message to Roman, the finish line now in sight. Before sending the message though, he crafted an illusion to make it appear that the hole was a foot shorter than it actually was. _'You're out of the hole. Stop concentrating on the panel and speed up.' _Roman looked down, his eyes clearing, and the panel started degenerating. Roman's eyes widened when he realized that the hole still was open beneath him, and struggled for concentration.

"Oh Sh---" Roman fell through the hole, loosing two seconds before he rose again, landing on solid ground, and skidding past the finish line. He looked up at Robin, his eyes narrowed.

"I must admit- that was… testing." He growled, dusting himself off. Robin smirked, shaking his head.

"One minute fifty-seven, new course record. Nice…" Robin said to Roman, who just shook his head and walked indoors.

Robin glanced beside him at Tempest. "You're up, Tempest. I'm not going to go easy on you, so don't even ask." Robin added seriously, pointing to the starting line. Tempest sighed, rolling her eyes, and partially skipped, partially walked to the starting line.

Tempest leaned forward, glancing at the countdown at the control panel. Robin set the correct form of tasks Tempest was to complete, reset the course, and started the countdown. He looked up at her, watching her waiting for him.

"And… go!" He called to her. Tempest started off quickly, adverting the disc-bombs thrown at her by steering the wind in their direction, causing them to fly backwards onto each other.

While Tempest managed the poles, Robin mentally kicked himself for letting him fall for her in less then five minutes. After all that 'Strictly enforcing the no couples rule', crap, too. He scolded himself, reminding him that he was here to protect the city, not to fall in some teenage love. Robin heard a boom in front of him and looked up immediately. Tempest had blown up the last pole using a lightning bolt, her shocked face showing that she hadn't meant to.

Robin frowned and turned a few dials, causing massive fans to appear on either side of the training course. Tempest slowed down, unsure of what they would do, but continued at a jog. Robin flipped the on switch, and caused the winds to gust around Tempest. "Aye! Ayeeeeeee!" She squealed, confused at the directions of the winds swirling around her.

She struggled forward, trying to create a barrier at the same time. Tempest focused on both the fans, aiming a sparking lightning bolt at both. The bolts flashed from her hands, yet missed one of their targets. Now one fan was whooshing her from the left side, forcing her towards the bay. Tempest growled, focusing all her attention on the fan while inching towards the finish line. Aiming correctly this time, she shot her bolt at the fan's whizzing blades. Striking it directly, the fan slowly died out, and Tempest crossed the finish line.

Robin nodded, looking up at Tempest while he reset the course, and turned off the timer. "Two minutes, four seconds." He walked towards Tempest, who had already made it to the Tower's entrance. She was leaning against the wall, panting softly. Robin stared at her before starting.

"Listen, Tempest, about our…" Robin pulled on his collar, trying to keep his voice from stuttering. "Flirting earlier. Well, I just thought that it'll be better to keep relationships totally neutral on this team. And with you…and me, it's not setting the right example."

Tempest watched his blush deepen with every word. She nodded, winking slightly. "Of course, Robin. I can resist." _'Can you?'_ Her thought went unspoken, though, and she walked in front of him into the entrance of the Tower. They took the elevator to the living room, and Tempest proceeded to her room, where her bathroom would provide a nice, warm shower. _'Just what I need.'_ She thought.

Robin turned to the three teammates in front of him. Roman was on the sofa, cross-legged, a small, black book in his hand with a strange gold insignia on the back, Changeling was transforming into cute animals, and Hiela, seated in front of him, giggled and laughed when Changeling would rub against her ankle purring in the form of a cat, dog, fox, bear cub, lion cub, and more childish animals.

Robin shook his head and took this as entertainment instead of flirting. He'd keep an eye on them just in case. He turned towards Roman accusingly. After a few minutes of ignoring Robin's glance, he looked up. "Yeah?" He asked, snapping his book shut with a dusty smack.

"Flare hasn't quit, has she?" Robin asked, concerned over the lack of a teammate. The doors swished open and Flare stepped out, a black towel wrapped around her body and hair. "No, I'm right here." She said, then continued to the stairway to get to her room.

Roman and Robin stared in her direction for a moment before Changeling scoffed. "Would you perverts stop drooling and start paying attention? Hiela and I want to know what and when we'll be eating."

Roman flushed, diving back into his book, and Robin readjusted his cape neck. "Oh. Uh, well, there's a pizza place in the City. I'm sure when Tempest and Flare get back and dressed; we can all head down there."

Roman glanced up from his book. "I'd hate to get caught by the news casts out there. Can't we just get a delivery?" He asked, groaning at the thought of being asked a hundred questions at once.

Robin nodded. "We can get into normal clothes. Take your costumes with you. It shouldn't be too hard to get them on. If you want, wear your clothes over them." He offered as an idea.

Changeling and Hiela glanced at each other. "Dude! What're WE going to do?"


	3. Chapter 3

Teen Titans: Revolution

Chapter 3- Surprise!

Changeling looked down at his green skin, then glanced at Hiela's blue skin. He looked up at Robin expectantly. "I don't think clothes are going to cover us up unless we dress up like we're going to the North Pole. And that'll just get us more attention." Changeling remarked, smirking. Hiela also looked up at Robin, pointing at his mask.

"And I don't suppose you plan on taking that off? I mean, I guess you could wear sunglasses…" Hiela said, a worried expression on her face. Changeling nodded in agreement with her, and glanced outside the huge Tower windows.

"It's not a very sunny day…" He smirked. Robin sighed, nodding.

"Okay already, I get the picture. So we either go hungry or face the press. What do you want to do?" He asked, glancing down at Roman. Roman glanced up from his book, a grimace visible. Robin shrugged, then looked back at Hiela and Changeling.

"We're going to face them at some point in this City. They're not going to stop me from eating, though." Roman finally grumbled, closing his book again. Changeling and Hiela smiled, while Robin nodded.

"Don't get ahead of yourselves. We still have to figure out how to get there." Roman, always the bringer of bad news, reminded the excited Titans. Robin shook his head, smirking.

"Already figured out. Before starting the team, I asked one of the old Titans, Cyborg, to give us a few vehicles. I gave him your descriptions so he could match up some things. He told me he filled the garage up." Robin had already seen the six motorcycles, four cars, a ship, sub, and a truck. He had had all his rides custom made, and had tried to add a little personalization to each of the other Titans' vehicles.

Roman's brow lifted, obviously interested in figuring out what he would be driving. Changeling rubbed his hands together, a grin appearing at the thought of driving. Robin looked in his direction.  
"Of course, you'll have to have you're license. Everyone here has one, right?" Robin asked precariously. Changeling grumbled, crossing his arms, and glared at Robin.

"Of course I have a license." He stated, eager to go downstairs.

Hiela looked down at her skirt, the pants underneath protecting her from worrying about anything rising up to high. She looked back up at Robin, holding her hand up, embarrassed.

"I don't have a license." She admitted, sighing. Changeling grinned, sliding an arm around her.  
"Don't worry about it, Hiela. I can always give you a ride." He purred. Hiela blushed furiously, shaking her head. Robin sighed, wondering how to manage to give Hiela transportation that didn't involve Changeling.  
"As long as you can make ice, I'd like you to rely on yourself to get around, alright, Hiela?" He asked, massaging his temples. Hiela nodded her head apologetically. Robin glared at Changeling. "You can give her a ride when necessary. Hiela, we'll work on getting your license when we have the time." He added, glancing at Hiela. Changeling made a fist and pulled downward, silently whispering: 'Yes!'

Flare came out, fully clothed in her black, flamed pants, shirt, and arm-sleeves, holding her black boots in her hands. She still had the towel tied up on her hair, giving her a clownish appearance. Changeling was about to point it out when Flare glared at him warningly.

"Don't say it." She said before glancing at Robin. "Why all this talk about licenses?" She asked, jumping over the couch and landing on the seat with a soft thump. Roman looked up when the door swished open again and Tempest came out, also curious. "License? What? Do we need a license to be heroes?" She asked. Robin chuckled, to his surprise, then shook his head.

"Oh, uh, no, we were, um, talk- Cyborg went a little crazy and gave us more vehicles than we needed, but that's okay. What I was saying was that in order to ride them, we need licenses. Hiela, so far, is the only one who doesn't have one." Robin mentally scolded himself for stuttering. He glanced around to see if anyone had noticed.

To his annoyance, everyone, other than Roman and Tempest, was grinning at him. "_What?_" He snapped, crossing his arms. "I'm just- you two have licenses, right?" He grumbled, glaring at Flare and Tempest. They both nodded, Flare taking the towel off her hair. "Good. Then get downstairs to the garage." Robin commanded, pointing at the elevator doors.

Roman shrugged, stepping away from the group. "I'll meet you down there." He said casually. His eyes glinted black as black energy surrounded him, and he transported to the garage.

The Titans stared at the spot where he had been a moment ago.

"I have _got_ to try that one day." Changeling finally joked, stirring everyone from their reverie. Flare tugged on her boots, stood up, and stretched out before stepping into the elevator. Tempest, followed by Changeling, Hiela, and then finally Robin, trailed behind her. While they weren't exactly squeezed into the elevator, there was little space among them. Flare had her back against the wall; Hiela was backed into the corner while Changeling stood in front of her, standing sideways to make room for Tempest, who had her back to Robin, who was facing the door. "Remind me to ask the construction workers to get this thing bigger…" He muttered. All of the Titans replied in an annoyed voice, agreeing with Robin. When the bell dinged on the garage floor, Robin, Changeling, and Tempest tumbled out. Flare and Hiela glanced at each other, giggling, before walking out, stepping over the sprawled Titans. Robin shook his head and got on all fours before standing up. He offered his hand to Tempest, who gratefully took his and pulled herself to her feet.

"Thanks." She said, blushing slightly. She brushed herself off before walking towards the covered automobiles.

"Dude, don't just leave me here! Help me up, too!" Changeling blurted, dramatically lying on the concrete floor. Robin smirked, grabbing his outstretched hand and yanking him to his feet. Changeling yelped, flying forward from the excess force of Robin's pull.

"Hey! That's the last time I get help from you!" He cried, glaring back at Robin. Robin chuckled, shrugging. Changeling suddenly paled, and pointed behind Robin. "Robin, there's someone behind you!" He yelped, turning into a cat and scurrying away. Robin glanced behind him, his hand flying to his belt full of explosives.

"Cool it, Robin. It's only me." Roman remarked, his arms crossed as he walked out of the shadows. "Took you guys long enough."

Robin shrugged, watching Changeling scurry back from his hiding spot under a car. "Heh, I so knew it was you, Roman. I was just trying to scare Robin." He said, his hand going to the back of his neck in embarrassment. Flare, Tempest and Hiela were walking through the garage, fingering the tarp covering the vehicles.

"Can we take the tarp off?" Tempest asked, eager to see her new car or cycle or other mode of transport that Cyborg had provided. Flare nodded in agreement, her curious fingers already prying away the covering tarp.

Robin shrugged, switching on a few more lights. "Knock yourselves out." He replied.

Flare snatched up the tarp and started tugging, while Tempest came and grabbed a piece, too. Both of them yanked and pulled and struggled to release the tarp. Hiela shuffled her feet beside them, her arms crossed in speculation.

"Maybe if Changeling wasn't pulling the other side as an elephant while you two tugged on this side, you could get the tarp off." She suggested. Flare and Tempest glanced at each other, confused, before looking over the tarp at a giant green elephant.

"Ooooh!"

Both girls let go, allowing the elephant to trample backward. Robin looked down at him, clearly shocked. "You two held back an elephant?"

The two girls looked at each other, shrugging. "Looks that way, doesn't it?" Flare replied, turning back to the revealed motorcycles. Tempest squealed and ran over to one with lightning streaks across it, the main color a dark, midnight blue.

"I love it!" She cried, jumping onto the seat. She clicked the many buttons on the bike, turning on lights, radio, honking the horn, causing a compartment in the front to open, a helmet to appear from underneath her seat, and start a countdown for some rockets.

"Oh! Oh, turn it off!" She yelped, franticly pressing the buttons. She clicked a yellow on and the countdown ceased to everyone's relief. Roman was glancing down at a black motorcycle lined with silver, taking the keys from the ignition and placing them in his pocket.

"Cyborg did pretty well…" He complimented, glancing around. Flare was standing over a flaming black motorcycle, Changeling was grinning and showing his green and purple-pawed one off to Hiela, and two more were off to the side. The light blue one with icicles was doomed to never be ridden unless Hiela really needed it, and Robin's had his insignia along with his colors along it.

"Let's keep looking." Hiela suggested, pointing at a few more clumps of tarp-covered mobiles. Roman used his power to lift the tarp off from the closest pile, revealing four cars.

"I think Cyborg overdid himself… _four_ cars?" Changeling observed, inspecting the team car that was mainly one color: red. Different shades of red spiraled throughout the high-tech car, and the following four had the same style but different colors: grey, black, and green.

After a few inspections over the T-ship, sub, and truck, the Titans all settled into the red T-car. Robin was driving; Hiela sat beside him as a 'trainee', while Changeling curled into a ball as a cat at Hiela's feet. This left Tempest behind the driver's seat, Roman in the middle, and Flare on the opposite side.

Flare leaned forward her lips pursed in confusion. "Okay, so how many pizzas are we going to be ordering? And how much will all this cost? And what toppings will we get? I doubt we all like the same thing…" She asked, causing Changeling's ear to twitch in response.

"Don't worry about it, Flare. As long as there's **no** meat," He paused, as if adding importance to his words, "Than there will be **no** problem."

Flare pouted, falling back into her seat. "But I like ham and pepperoni on mine!" She whined. Roman also looked up, nodding.

"You animal killer!" Shrieked Changeling, bouncing into Hiela's lap, all the while trying to glare at Flare from his position. Hiela yelped in surprise at Changeling's appearance. He kept the form of a cat, so it was hard to take him seriously. Flare pouted, crossing her arms. Changeling continued to accuse her of animal cruelty, and tried to convince her that animals had equal rights.

"Changeling, whatever rights they have, they taste delicious. And I'm going to eat them." She replied in a monotonous voice, licking her lips. Changeling, dramatically, of course, fell down Hiela's lap and crashed onto the floor. He appeared a furry mound of twitching mass as he was struck by the fierceness of Flare's words.

"Awww, don't worry Changeling. I only order cheese on my pizza." Hiela cooed, picking up the fur-ball gently. Roman and Flare both glanced at each other, rolling their eyes, then quickly looked away. Flare ended up blushing as she looked out at the streets of Jump City.

"Wha-? We left the garage!" She blurted, practically jumping out of her seat. Roman smirked, shaking his head at her.

"Yeah, you would have noticed if you hadn't been so caught up with the cat." Roman replied, watching her eyes widen in surprise.

"That was really fast…" She mumbled, leaning back in her seat. She glanced beside her to steal a look at Roman, and found him looking ahead in disgust. "What's wrong?" She asked, straightening up.

"Take a look outside your window. The press is waiting for us." Roman groaned, sinking down into his seat. Hiela sighed, looking down at the purring cat in her lap.

"I wish I could turn into… something very small and just get some pizza without everyone seeing me… You're lucky, you know?" She poked Changeling, who mewed in response. Robin gripped the wheel of the car tightly, glancing behind him at Tempest, Roman and Flare.

"Try not to answer many questions. Keep your faces averted from the cameras, and don't use your powers in front of these guys. They'll twist anything into a story about us being stupid, weak teens bent on destroying the City. Just focus on getting inside the pizza store." Robin commanded, glancing around at everyone. Changeling, still in cat form, saluted up at him. Everyone else nodded and shrugged, sinking down and looking away from the windows of the cars. Tempest and Flare turned their heads towards Roman, while Roman looked down, and Hiela sunk down in her seat, staring at her boots. Robin glared ahead, having to keep his eyes on the road. Pictures snapped away at the car while the Titans inched their way forward, their path obscured by numerous news casts trying to get a shot at them.

Flare yelped in surprise when a reporter for 'The Jump on Jump City' bounded up to her window, started banging on it, and yelled questions into the car.

"How old are all of you?"  
"What are your powers?"  
"How do you intend to help our City?"

"Do any of you have criminal records?"

Flare groaned, putting her hand up to the window to try to stop the barrage of questions. The man continued, his voice rising. Roman reached up and unclipped his cloak from his neck, and pulled it off him.

"Here. Since both of you are by the window this should help." He spread it out over both Tempest and Flare's head, causing both girls to squeeze against him in order to fit beneath the cloak. He leaned forward to try and get more space in between him and them. Flare and Tempest peeked out from under the cloak to thank him then covered their faces again, holding the black material tightly. Roman rested his elbows on his knees, then placed his face in his hands.

"Almost there, Titans. We're parking a few blocks away. Hopefully they won't know where we're going. Roman, can you teleport us all to the pizza place?" Robin asked, turning the wheel to narrowly avoid a camera and microphone that appeared out of the sea of reporters. "Shoot…" He growled, watching more cameras pop out along the street. "Hold on everyone." He commanded, holding the wheel with one hand while pulling back a lever and clicking a red button. The T-car rose up on a pivot, and engines appeared on the back of the vehicle. Flare and Tempest gasped, tearing the cloak off them.

"Robin! You better not be doing what I think you're doing!" Tempest cried, grabbing her seatbelt and clicking it on. Roman and Flare followed her, as well as Hiela. Changeling was held tightly against her chest. Robin nodded, switching a switch.

"Titans, hold on!"

The car jolted forward before rocketing into the air. Tempest and Flare screamed, both of them grabbing a hold of Roman. Roman grimaced, the sudden force of flying up causing all of them to be pressed against the seat.

"Doooon't doo tttthis eeever agggaaain!" Tempest yelled, her teeth chattering with the force of gravity pulling back on her. Robin nodded, desperately trying to steer the car while still being pushed back.

"Turn ttthem off!" cried Hiela, squeezing onto Changeling as if he were a lifeline. Robin gritted his teeth, reaching for the switch that would disable the engines.

"Azar zenith!" Roman finally blurted, his eyes black, his hands gripping the seats in front of him. The car, surrounded in black aura, was shoved forward, and landed at the roof of the pizza hut, its engines disabled. Flare and Tempest, who had been squeezing the life out of Roman, opened their eyes. Robin and Hiela glanced around, while Changeling wriggled out of Hiela's grip.

"Thank you, but you could have done that in the first place, you know." Flare mumbled, releasing her iron grip on Roman. Tempest did the same, nodding. Roman scowled, glaring in Flare's direction.

"Robin told me to teleport us _after_ we got away from the press." He reminded her, pulling his cloak back on, clipping it into place with the dark blue clasp, then glanced up at Robin, Changeling and Hiela. "Is everyone okay?" He asked.

Changeling shook himself, and jumped onto the dash of the car. "Define okay…" The green cat growled, his paw rising to his chest. Hiela's hand flew to her mouth, and she gasped.

"Changeling, I'm so sorry! I must have been crushing you!" she cried through her hand. Changeling shrugged his tiny shoulders, his tail twitching.

"Eh, I'm alive, so I guess I'm okay. Don't have a kitten over it, Hiela." He said, holding back laughter. The Titans rolled their eyes and opened the doors to the car, filing out. Changeling followed them, transforming the moment his feet touched the concrete. "What? It was funny!" He protested.

Flare shook her head, grinning, while the other Titans headed towards the roof doorway. Robin admitted Tempest and Hiela to go first, then entered himself. Flare, followed by Roman and Changeling, followed the first three. When all six Titans appeared in the supply closet of the pizza parlor, they were stuck.

"You can't be serious. The door is locked!" Tempest moaned, her hand resting on the door. Robin was searching through his belt, mumbling something about having a lock pick in one of the compartments. Hiela was waiting patiently beside the door, leaning against the wall. Changeling had turned into a mouse, and was now struggling to fit under the crack of the doorway. Flare stared at Roman expectantly.

Roman rolled his eyes and lifted his hand to the door knob, encasing it in black energy. In a second, the knob twisted and Tempest stumbled forward, falling into the kitchen of the pizza place.

"All this trouble for a slice of pizza." Roman growled under his breath. Robin nodded, agreeing with Roman as he helped Tempest to her feet. Flare walked ahead, speaking to the chiefs. Changeling and Hiela headed towards the door, peeking out to make sure none of the press was present. They both sighed in relief when they saw the parlor empty except for a couple groups of teenagers in the front. Both of them stepped out of the kitchen, and walked to the man behind the cash register.

"Give us six pizzas pronto." Changeling commanded, and pointed back at the booths. "We'll take that big one. Make two of the pizzas cheese. Ask the others what they want when they come out." He said, pointing back at the kitchen door where Robin, Tempest, Roman and Flare were filing out. The man behind the cash register stared up at Changeling, rubbing his eyes and glancing at Hiela.

"Yeah, I'm green. Yes, she's blue. Now can we please have our food?" Changeling begged, his stomach growling loudly. Hiela laughed softly and headed towards the largest booth. Changeling followed her, scooting in beside her. Flare stepped up to the register, her hands resting on the counter. "I'd like bacon, ham, pepperoni and extra cheese, please." She said, dropping a dollar into the tip-cup. "Please don't burn it. I'm starved."

Robin shook his head at Flare, an amused smile on his face. "I'll have pepperoni." He said before looking at Tempest. She shrugged, looking up at the menu.

"How about… uh, I'll just take extra cheese." She said, following Robin to the booth. The five titans stared at each other as they sat down, and suddenly burst out laughing. Each one of them had looked so serious, as if something big had actually happened, instead of appearing as they were just going out for pizza.

Roman, watching them, shook his head after ordering a sausage pizza. He scooted into the booth beside Changeling. Flare, sitting across from him, grinned. "C'mon Roman, you look as if someone died. Brighten up; we're just out for pizza. It's not like the press is some army of death." She teased. Roman shrugged, leaning back in his seat.

"We really need to loosen up. Imagine how serious we're all gonna be when we actually face a villain instead of the press." Changeling chortled. Before anyone could reply, six boxes of pizzas were placed in front of them. They all glanced at each other, then dove towards the center of the table, yelling.

"Cheese is mine!"  
"No way! I ordered cheese!"

"Well I ordered double cheese!"

"Gimme my pepperoni!"

"Found mine! HA!"

Roman sunk down into his seat, his eyes wide as the five titans reached over the table, snatching boxes of pizza from each others' hands. Roman used his powers to snatch a box of pizza, and peeked inside. "Yikes. Tempest, I hope you didn't want your cheese _on_ the pizza." He called to her, pushing the box in her direction.

Tempest grimaced as she opened the box, glaring at the sticky web of cheese all over the inside of the box. "Aw, this sucks. Good going, guys." She pouted, picking the cheese off the box and placing it back on the pizza.

Flare finally managed to grab a pizza, and pried it open. "Cheese, cheese and more cheese! Doesn't anybody know where the meat is!" She cried in frustration. Robin held the box above his head, smirking.

"Here it is." Robin reached over Tempest's head to hand the box to Flare. She opened the box, sighing. "No, this is sausage." She groaned, pushing the box away. Roman caught it, and opened the box again.

"That'll be mine."

"AH! GET THIS ABOMINATION AWAY FROM ME!" Changeling screamed, throwing a box clear across the table. Flare yelped, ducking down as the pizza box flew towards her, landing above her.

"I'm guessing that was mine…" She squeaked, glancing up at the box. Flare placed it in front of her, opened it, and grinned. "Ha! Only half destroyed. In your face, Changeling."

Robin and Tempest finally found their pizza, while Hiela and Changeling were already on their third slices. Roman glanced at a final pizza box on the table. His ears picked up a ticking noise, and he poked Changeling to get his attention.

"Hey, do you hear anything?" Roman whispered, pointing at the box on the table. Changeling's ears twitched, and he nodded. "Yeah. Sounds like a clock." He said before diving back into his pizza.

Roman reached towards the box, and put his ear against it. Flare eyed him suspiciously, raising her pizza to her mouth to take a bite.

"What're you doing?" She asked before biting into the pizza. Roman shook the box, causing a hollow sound to vibrate inside the box. Robin's eyes widened in realization to what the box was containing. He jumped up as well as he could while still stuck inside the booth. "Roman, get rid of the box! Titans, get out of here! Get everyone out!" He yelled, causing the Titans to stop in mid bite. Confused, four of the Titans stumbled out of the booth, pizza in hand, and started yelling at people to leave the building.

Roman, on the other hand, was running towards the supply closet. The ticking that Changeling was hearing was getting faster, and he realized what it was.

"Bomb! Roman's getting rid of a bomb!" He yelped, grabbing the few people in the building by their arms and flinging them towards the door. "Get out, hurry!"

Flare's eyes widened and she looked in the direction of the supply closet. Roman was coming back out, the box now gone. "I had to leave it on the roof. I don't know when it'll blow so I'm not teleporting that thing with me!" he told Robin, shutting the door behind him. Hiela was escorting two chiefs to the emergency exit while Tempest was calling the cops. Flare ran towards Roman.

"The car- it wasn't there was it?" she asked. Roman hesitated before shaking his head.

"Whoever did this stole the car, too." Roman shrugged, and then looked outside. The block was full of pedestrians. "We have to get those people out of here. That thing's going to blow, and soon."

Hiela came back, pointing at the direction the chiefs had left. "They're going to tell people to get away." She said, nervously glancing back at the clearing street. Most people were running now, and a few were screaming. Flare turned and headed towards the doorway. The Titans followed her, each of them turning to Robin once they were at the door. "Titans, get everyone within a mile of this building out of here. I want it done in under a minute. Ready? Titans, Go!"

Changeling took of as a cheetah, then became an pterodactyl. Gathering people on his back, he dropped them off a mile away, and then came back for more. Flare grabbed children off the streets with help from Tempest, and Hiela ushered animals away from the pizza place. Robin escorted everyone else away while Roman made sure everyone stayed away. Flare came running back, standing next to Roman, and grabbed his arm.

"Robin said to leave. We have everyone far enough away." She said. Roman nodded, and proceeded to run in the direction that Changeling had gone. Flare had started to follow him, but turned around when something caught her eye.

A bright yellow baby carriage was left on the side walk. Screaming and sobbing was easily heard from inside of it, so Flare sprinted in the child's direction. Roman glanced behind him, and saw Flare running in the kid's direction.

'_Why didn't I notice that before…?'_He wondered, stopping to wait for Flare. Flare reached the carriage, and glanced inside. The white covers were concealing a small child who was kicking and screaming.

"Hurry up, Flare!" Roman yelled, glancing up at the building. Flare reached down to take the child. In her arms, the child became very quiet. Flare glanced down to make sure the baby was okay, when she noticed the eyes were completely yellow.

"What the-" Before Flare could comment on the eyes or even blink for that matter, a laser-like beam shot from the baby's eyes, hitting Flare directly in the chest. She gasped and dropped the baby, falling back onto her butt as she tried to breath. She fell onto her back and squeezed her eyes shut as the burning feeling shot throughout her body.

Roman was surprised when the yellow beam shot out, and was horrified when Flare dropped the baby. Only then did he notice the child's eyes were yellow. They proceeded to dull while Flare writhed in pain on the ground. To top off the moment, the bomb erupted, causing the building to burst into flames. Roman ran towards Flare, glancing at the parlor beside him. It started to fall in on itself, the structure causing ash to fall everywhere. Roman whipped out his communicator and clicked the emergency ring over and over until he was sure he broke it.

Flare heard the explosion but couldn't get her eyes to open. For that matter, she couldn't get her body to move. Every inch of her stung, and was frozen in place. The beam had paralyzed her. She groaned and waited for something –anything- to happen.

Roman skidded to a stop beside her. The pizza place, called _Piza Palace_ he just realized, was throwing debris every where as the bomb continued to explode in segments. Roman kneeled down beside Flare, shaking her slightly with his hand.

"Can you move?" He asked her. Flare replied in a muffled cry. Roman looked up to see the Piza Palace crashing into the building next to it, causing that building's windows to shatter over the street. His eyes continued up the street until he saw the other Titans waving at him. They were pointing in the opposite direction; all screaming at once something that he couldn't hear.

Roman turned, and to his surprise was looking into the eyes of a blonde haired girl. "You shouldn't be here! Get out of this area now!" Roman yelled. To his surprise, two more teens came up behind her. A dark, pale girl entirely dressed in black with midnight-blue hair stepped out of the shadows and a boy dressed in a brown body suit with stripes along his back and legs appeared from what looked like thin air.

Roman slid his arms under Flare's legs and neck, and found her to be stiff. He managed to get her to relax and her neck and legs fell limp in his arms. The three teens in front of him stepped forward as Roman stepped back, his boots crunching the glass.

Robin's voice filled the air as he finally used his communicator to speak to Roman.

"Get out of there! Those are H.I.V.E. agents!" his voice was anxious and worried.

Roman continued to inch backward until he felt piles of debris too large to step over. The bomb finally silenced itself, but the buildings continued to crash. Roman glanced behind him. In the second that he did, the H.I.V.E. agents disappeared from his vision.

"Shit." Roman looked down at Flare, then looked behind him. "Aldruon Enlenthranal." Roman whispered, and sank down into the street beneath him. He rematerialized behind Robin, kneeling over in a dazed state. He glanced up at the Titans who had surrounded him immediately.

"Mph. I've never done that before." He muttered, slowly getting to his feet. Robin looked at Flare who was recovering from the paralysis in Roman's arms.

"Stupid baby…"She groaned, forcing her eyes to open. "What happened? Who hit me?" She grumbled. She looked up to see Roman and Robin's faces glaring down at her. "What did I do?" She asked, her words slurred.

"You got your butt kicked by a baby!" Changeling taunted, snickering. Roman shook his head and shifted Flare in his arms.

"I think they paralyzed you. Can you move your arm?" He asked, glancing down at her. She glared up at him, frowning.

"I can't even_ feel _my arm." She protested, annoyed with the loss of motion. Robin looked at Tempest and Hiela, who were stationed as lookouts in front and behind the group.

"You're just going to get in the way with the H.I.V.E. Academy nearby. Roman, can you teleport her home?" Robin asked, looking back at the fallen buildings. Roman shrugged as well as he could with Flare in his arms. "Doesn't bother me. Should I come back and help out though?" He asked. Robin shook his head furiously. Then he changed his mind, and nodded.

"Whatever you want to do, just get her out of here- they're coming." Robin snapped, pointing at a shadow-like figure coming out of the fallen buildings.

Correction; the thing _was_ a shadow. Hiela wielded water from her hands and blasted the figure, but the water merely went through. Tempest looked down at her shadow to find that it was stretching in the direction of the dark figure. "What the-"

"Tempest, flash that thing with a lightning bolt." Hiela suggested. Tempest nodded, her eyes flashing with along with her hands. Lifting her sparking hands, she flashed a clash of bolts at the black figure, causing it to shriek and retreat into the shadows.

"Ah, I get it, it's from darkness." Tempest said, her hands still crackling with energy. Hiela turned around, her position ready to jump if necessary. Changeling was staring at the wall with intensity, interest obvious in his eyes. Tempest raised her eyebrow.

"Now's not the time to watch paint dry, Changeling." She called out to him, smirking. Changeling bit his lip to hold back a laugh. He transformed before them, into a fly. Tempest and Robin hadn't seen the new Changeling, but Hiela's attentive eyes caught him buzzing around the wall.

While Hiela's attention was away from in front of her, the dark shadows crawled closer. Tempest swerved on her foot, pointing her hands in the shadow's direction.

"Hiela, move!" She yelled, shooting a bolt in her direction. Hiela glanced down, gasping.

Robin, watching his team as well as the villains, snapped out a grappling hook, aimed at Hiela's hips, and shot the hook. Milliseconds before Hiela was bathed in the electrical energy, Robin's hook swung around her waist, and he pulled her back with a force that sent her flying.

He caught her with one arm, and then steadied her while glancing towards Changeling. He had transformed into a cheetah in an attempt to reach her, and was now at the spot Hiela had been moments ago. The lightening had dissipated along with the shadows. He transformed back into his human form, frowning.

"Are you okay, Hiela?" He called to her. She nodded, blinking.

"I think I'm seeing things though…" She mumbled. Tempest yelped, blasting the air behind Changeling.

"Something's here! I can't see it though!" She said, stealing a glance at Robin. He looked back at her, scanning around her position.

"I don't see anything!" He protested. Tempest looked around, her stance still menacing. Changeling also looked around, nodding.

"She's right, Robin. Something's her- Oomph!" Changeling's sentence was cut short as he doubled over, and for a second, all Titans noticed the shimmering outline of a boy. "The third one!" Changeling gasped, clutching his stomach.

"Tempest, take care of the shadow. Hiela, come with me. Changeling, handle the invisible one!" Robin barked out his orders, then pointed forward, calling out the never-changing phrase:

"_Titans_, **_go_**!"

_T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T_

Flare was lying stiffly on the couch. She struggled to move her fingers, and for that matter, to breath. She felt constricted, and worse, she felt vulnerable. She grunted as her body continued to protest her effort to move.

Roman wasn't making it any easier on her. He was pacing in front of her, his hands clasped tightly behind his back. Much to Flare's annoyance, he kept glancing at her, an annoyed expression on his face.

"Mmm" She groaned, her eyes moving down to stare at her hand.

'_C'mon, hand, work with me. Fingers move! …Please?'_

'_Stop thinking. You're thoughts are going straight to me, and whether or not you think so, they're annoying.' _

Flare gasped, her eyes widening. She looked up to see Roman glancing back at her.

"Sorry. I'm not supposed to pick up people's thoughts, but you're really… persistent. And you talk-_think_- a lot." Roman muttered, sitting down at her feet. Flare struggled to sit up, yet failed.

'_If you're still too paralyzed to move your lips, just think. I'll pick up you're thoughts.'_

Roman's voice filtered through her mind, and yet she knew he wasn't speaking. She stared at his face, his unmoving lips, as the words flowed through her mind.

'_You should go help the others.'_ This was the first thought to come to mind, and Roman frowned. "That's it? You're telling me to leave?" He asked, his brow rising in question. Flare tried to nod, but then rolled her eyes in remembrance.

'_They need you more than I do. 'Sides, you're just getting me aggravated pacing up and down like you were.'_ She snapped, closing her eyes.

"Robin would tell me to come back. You can't even move; if the H.I.V.E. agents were to infiltrate the Tower…"

'_I'd be a sitting duck. Hm, okay, stay. But can't you do something to make me move?'_ Flare asked, opening her eyes again to stare at him.

Roman thought for a moment. He glanced at her, his stare apprehensive.

"I've only removed paralysis once before, and that was on a dog." He warned her, placing a palm on her shoulder. Flare's eyes narrowed accusingly.

'_There's something you're not telling me.'_ Roman hesitated before nodding, placing another hand on her other shoulder and staring into her eyes.

'_The dog kinda… uh, well… boom.'_ He translated the thought to her, closing his eyes. Flare tensed under his hands, and he waited for her response.

"Don't you DARE try to use some exploding mumbo jumbo on me!" She screamed, jumping to her feet. She wobbled momentarily, then looked at Roman in wonder. She gaped at him, annoyed at being tricked. For a moment, she could have sworn there was a twinkle in his eyes and a smirk on his face. She pointed at him, her eyes narrowed.

"That was wicked, cruel, and totally uncalled for." She hissed, her eyes blazing with embarrassment. Roman shrugged, and pointed at her.

"You're standing, aren't you? Besides, I have practiced that on a human. Fright gets adrenaline rushing, and it speeds up the process. I'm not going to hurt you." He said, rolling his eyes. Flare pouted for a moment before looking out the window. "We should help the other Titans."

Roman nodded, taking her upper arm. "Zaire Azen" He muttered, pulling his cape around Flare as darkness enveloped them.

_T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T_

Roman appeared in the middle of a fight between Hiela and the blond HIVE agent. Robin emerged, slamming his bo-staff into the back of the girl's lower back. Roman lifted Flare while she was still in a daze from the transportation, and jumped out of the way as Hiela shot ice from her hands.

"Roman, help Tempest. She can't fight the shadow, it keeps running away!" Robin yelled from his position. He dodged a yellow ray from the blond girl's hands. "And for God's sake, don't get hit by this thing." He added.

Roman nodded, running towards Tempest. He stopped when he heard a loud 'Ehem' from his arms. "Oh, right." He muttered, letting Flare go. She fell to the ground with a thud, and Roman ran forward again, leaving Flare shaking her head and getting to her feet.

Changeling stumbled past her, his eyes searching as he turned around quickly. "It's invisible. Be ready." Changeling blurted to Flare before turning back around.

"I'm not invisible. My name is Chameleon." The boys' monotonous voice drifted from Flare's left side, and in a blast, she shot a ball of fire in it's direction.

Chameleon was no longer droning. Instead, his yelp was heard, and smoke along with the smell of burning appeared behind Changeling. Flare knew she may not get another chance, so she pounced, landing on Chameleon. She locked her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist and held on tightly. "Changeling, hit him with something!" She yelped, jolting around as Chameleon tried to shake her off.

"And if I hit you?" He asked circling Flare. Her grip on him was slipping. "Just do it!" She cried, her hands grabbing onto his shirt piece. Changeling winced before transforming into a small rhino. "NO! Something smaller!" Flare screamed, shutting her eyes.

Changeling grunted before changing into a raptor, and ran forward to the hidden body of Chameleon, aiming to hit him with his head. Chameleon twisted, trying to use Flare as a shield to him. Flare let go and crawled away as quickly as she could. Changeling hit the boy head-on, and he crashed onto the street, his camouflage fading. Flare ran towards a stop sign, melted the bottom half and the red hexagon 'stop' shape, then ran back towards the fallen villain, heating it so that it was pliable in her hands. She wrapped it around him twice, squeezing it slightly, and leaned him against the wall.

"Caluori!" He whimpered, his voice ringing through the street. The blond girl with streaked hair looked up immediately. She smirked when she saw Flare.

"Recover so quickly?" She asked, her voice taunting and quiet. Roman glared in her direction, his eyes narrowing. Flare rolled her eyes, heading towards Caluori with flames in her hands.

"I had some help. Besides, it was a weak attack anyway." She shot back, her response just as cocky. Changeling transformed into a guard dog and paced in front of Chameleon. Hiela and Robin were using Flare as a distraction as they crept closer to Caluori.

"Don't think I can't see you two. I think it's time you guys freeze." Caluori snapped, flinging down a yellow beam at their feet. It ricocheted off the street and smacked the two Titans' knees. Hiela fell back and Robin fell forward, grunting. Flare ran forward, blasting herself up with a stream of fire, and kicked Caluori in the back of her neck. Caluori fell forward, gasping, and reached back to latch on to Flare's ankle.

"Oh!" Flare managed to squeak before falling to the ground with Caluori. The blond girl jumped to her feet and grabbed Flare's ankle again, dragging her on the street and swinging her in a circle before letting her go, causing her to hit the bank behind her. Flare shook her head to regain her stature and jumped to her feet, only to realize that she had lost sight of Caluori.

"You seem to have the bark, but do you have the bite?" Caluori asked, dropping down from above Flare. Her feet landed on her back, causing Flare to fall to the ground. Flare's eyes narrowed into slits and her hands burst into flames as she flipped around and shot a stream of fire above her, only to find that Caluori had jumped away.

Flare charged forward until she realized that Hiela and Robin were amidst the confines of a shadowy box. Roman and Tempest were struggling to get them out, but Tempests' lightning wasn't bright enough. Flare looked back at Caluori, skidding to a stop, and ran towards her teammates. She leapt up onto the shadow enclosure.

"Tempest, on three, shoot at Caluori." Flare commanded, aiming downward. Roman stepped back as Tempest nodded. He glanced back at Changeling to see him watching in amusement, obviously wanting to join the fight.

"Three!"

A blast of combined fire and lightning flashed through the street. Roman flung his cloak above his head to cover his eyes, and he heard Changeling yip as a dog. Flare stepped back a bit as the shadows retreated, hissing, and the girl appeared, swaying from side to side and rubbing her head. Roman slung his cape from his face, and used his powers to grab the girl and pull her towards him. She did so while staggering, and he tied her up in his power. Caluori narrowed her eyes at the Titans, clutching her stomach from Tempests' lightning bolt.

"I can see we actually face a challenge this time." Caluori scoffed, straightening. She looked at her fallen comrades. "I'll be seeing you guys soon." She added, taking a small, round grey ball from her skirt pocket. Tempest' eyes widened in realization. She proceeded to run towards the blond, paralyzing HIVE agent but was pushed back by the smoke bomb hitting the floor.

When the smoke cleared, she noticed Changeling dragging Chameleon towards them, and Roman pulling the dark girl by the back of her turtleneck shirt. Flare was helping Hiela to her feet, who had received the lesser blow of the paralyzing ray. Robin was sprawled on the ground. Tempest headed in his direction, sighing, and kneeled beside him. She pulled his head into her lap for comfort, and brushed his hair away from his mask.

"Well, that blond girl got away. We caught two of them, and- oh, look at that. The press is coming. You might want to get up now, boy wonder." She whispered to him, smiling slightly. Robin grunted, frowning slightly. Flare watched in silent amusement, crossing her arms. She looked at Roman, smiling.

"Would you do the honors?" She asked. Roman rolled his eyes, and let go of the black-clad girl. He knelt beside Robin and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Heads up, Robin. I've only done this once before, and it was on Flare. Just look at what I did to her." Roman sighed, watching Flare expectantly. She pouted before dramatically dropping to the ground, twitching exaggeratedly. Robin murmured something incomprehensible as Roman used his powers to relax the paralyzed muscles throughout his body. Robin jumped to his feet, searching around.

"You're welcome, you know, it was my pleasure." Roman muttered, crossing his arms. Robin glanced behind him, grinning, and nodding. Roman looked at Flare on the ground, and offered his hand to her. "We're done, you can stop." Flare opened her eyes and smiled, shaking her head.

"Are you kidding me? We haven't even started. We still have the press to face, the H.I.V.E. to find, a place to put those two," Flare took his hand and he pulled her to her feet, biting his lip to keep from smirking. Flare looked at him in shock, smiling wider. "Oh, look at this, progress. I can mark one thing of my list, 'make Roman smile'." She said sarcastically.

Roman shook his head, looking down. The streetlight above them smashed open, sending glass raining down on Flare. She held out her palm, sighing. "And to top it off, I'm showered by glass."

Robin called to his Titans and ordered them to pull the two captured H.I.V.E. agents onto the sidewalk. Roman encased them in a cage, which he reminded, would probably not hold the shadow girl. Robin shrugged, "It's fine. Okay, Titans. Answer the questions you want to, because there's no avoiding them now."

Flare glanced beside her at Roman, crossing her arms. "And don't think you're off the hook, mister. I'm not forgetting what you did earlier. Just dropping me like that. The nerve of you boys…" She muttered. "And to top it off, I also want to ask you about why you procrastinated so long to unfreeze me. It's not fun being paralyzed, and you just stay there, pacing in front of me, while you had the change to unfreeze me the moment I was frozen!" She added, glaring at him. Changeling smirked and nudged Tempest.

"Oh-la-la, Roman's got one heck of a love problem there. Why _did_ you wait, Roman? Wanted to stay near her? To _hold_ her?" Changeling taunted. Roman's cheeks flushed as he held his arm out at Changeling, darkness zapping the green teen. "Ouch!" Changeling yelped.

"Shut up, you little-"

"All of you quit it! They're coming!" Tempest squealed, pointing ahead at the cameras that were running towards them. The police were squeezing past them trying to get a squad car though to gather up the H.I.V.E. agents.

And so, they prepared to face their next biggest fear:

The reporters.


	4. Chapter 4

Teen Titans: Revolution

Chapter 4-Hiela's memory

"_Beautiful." _

_An old, tired looking man stood on a frozen lake, looking up at the northern lights spread out on the sky, like butter on a slice of toast. "Aren't they beautiful, Crystal?" The man asked, hugging a little girl at his side. She smiled and nodded furiously, her hair bouncing off her coat. _

"_B-but it's e-extremely c-c-cold." She shivered, causing the man to rub her sleeved arm. He looked back at the lights before patting her head._

"_I think you and I both know this was worth the cold." He whispered, smiling. Crystal grinned, happy to see the man so happy. She slipped her tiny hand into his much larger one. Crystal was about to respond to his comment when she heard a loud crack, followed by a series of snaps and creaks. _

"_What's going on!" She asked, hearing the man gasp. She looked around nervously. To her dismay she saw cracks throughout the ice, stretching towards the pair. Crystal followed the cracks with her eyes to the origin, which led up to a gaping hole in the ice, where the top of a large rock was visible. Crystal gasped as she was swept into the man's arms and he proceeded to run._

"_Crystal, hold on to me!" He yelled, holding her small arms around his neck and moving her to his back. Crystal clutched him tightly, fear etched into her face. She looked back in time to see the ice at their feet snapping in two. She screamed into the man's ear, feeling them both tumble forward._

_The freezing water blocked out all the feelings Crystal had. Her grip on the man loosened, but he wasn't giving up now. Snatching the young girl's hand, he swam up, his numb arms desperately trying to grip Crystal. He emerged gasping, his eyes wide in shock. Crystal was shivering violently as the man held her in his arms and kicked towards the shore, the ice already broken up to the bank. Slowly, he felt his eyes closing._

"_Just… get her… to the bank… Crystal… I love you, my little girl…" He whispered, looking down at her. Her skin was tinged blue with cold, and her lips were a light purple. Her hair was freezing as it drifted in the water. "I'm so sorry. I can't… go any further." The man wheezed. Crystal weakly opened her eyes, blinking to brush the gathering ice from her lashes. _

_He slowly fell into the watery depths, leaving Crystal on a chunk of floating ice. At the moment, a man was already jumping into the water to reach her, screaming at her not to fall asleep. _

_The rescuer grabbed Crystal, rubbing her furiously and peeling off her wet clothes. "C'mon, girl, say something." He begged. Crystal's eyes flew open and she gasped for a breath._

"_Dad!" she screamed, leaning forward. She fainted then and there, falling into the snow in front of her. The rescuer was divided, half of him wanting to leap back into the water to save her father, and the rest wanting to stay with her. In the end, he stayed with Crystal, and led her towards his house.……………. _

_With a gasp, Crystal woke up. She opened her eyes and blinked, seeing nothing but darkness. She felt around desperately, feeling the cold metal around her. In a moment of fear, she felt something leave her hands, something cold, and watery. She felt it creep towards the door of the metal box, where she followed it until it blasted from her hands. She blinked her eyes and saw ice coming from her blue-tinged hands. She opened her throat to yell and call for help, but snapped it shut when she saw where she was._

_A morgue._

'_**I'm dead…**'_

_T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T_

Hiela awoke, panting, near screaming, and clutching the covers of her bed tightly. She glanced around nervously, her eyes wide. She fought her way out of the covers and reached for her bedside lamp, and turned it on with a quick snap. Light filled the room.

Hiela breathed a sigh of relief. It was just a nightmare; a strangely familiar, reoccurring nightmare, but a nightmare nonetheless. She crawled out of her bed and proceeded to pace around her room, trying to get her breathing evened out. She squeezed her eyes shut and clasped her hands behind her back tightly, biting her lip in confusion, her thoughts drifting over the dream.

After a while, Hiela realized there was no way she was going to get back to sleep. She grabbed her comforter and aired it out, let it settle on the bed, and turned around. She slipped into her boots and walked to the door of her room. When she stepped out into the hallway and the door shut, she noticed there wasn't any light throughout the tower. Wherever she was going, she'd have to make it without light.

Hiela sighed, closing her eyes. _'The living room.'_ She thought, heading in the direction she thought belonged to the living room. Twice, she met a dead end, and once she opened the door to Roman's room. **That** was an experience she'd rather _never_ again have to encounter; he had woken up in a T-shirt and shorts and slammed the door so hard that the wind following it caused Hiela to stumble to the side.

She left his hallway in a rush, and stumbled out into the living room. By now, it was very early in the morning, and Hiela was feeling rather tired after walking throughout most of the Tower. Yawning, she stretched out on the plush sofa of the living room. To her contentment, the remote was in reach.

She took it from its spot on the sofa's armrest and switched the T.V. on, putting it on low volume. Before long, she felt her eyes becoming heavy. She searched along the couch for the remote where she left it, and clicked the off button. Curling into a ball, she let sleep come to her, and prayed for no dreams.

_T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T_

Changeling tumbled out of his full-size bed, waking with a bang. He yelped and scurried to his feet, allowing his sheets to wrap around his legs, and causing him to fall again. Suddenly, his communicator started to ring, and he crawled towards that, half-asleep, and still wrapped in his sheets. He opened the communicator, yawning a 'Yeah?' into it before glancing at the screen.

Roman appeared on the screen, his eye twitching slightly, and other than his lamp, his room seemed to be encased in darkness. "Some. People. Do. Try. To. Sleep." He hissed, narrowing his bright blue eyes. Changeling gulped, nodding. He guessed that Roman had been disturbed a few times during the night or he wouldn't have bothered with the banging upstairs.

Changeling sighed and closed the communicator. He reached for his costume and pulled it on, bumping his toe on his bedside table. He grumbled as he quietly made his way out of his room, trying to walk lightly to not disturb his roommates below him. _'Mmm, some warm milk. That'll put me right back to sleep.'_

Changeling blindly made his way to the kitchen, where he searched the wall with his hand until he found the light switch. Flicking it on, he took in the room until finding the refrigerator. Pulling it open slowly, he found the milk and was preparing to pull it out when his expert ears caught the small sound of breathing. He stood up straight and pulled his hand away from the milk, shutting the fridge.

Changeling's eyes narrowed as he sniffed around, smiling when he recognized the sent of Hiela. Then, as he wondered what she could possibly be doing in the living room, he frowned, and hurried forward to inspect. He scanned the living room quickly, his frown deepening when he saw Hiela sprawled on the couch, clutching the material tightly.

Suddenly, to his surprise, Hiela screamed, loud and long, and sat up crying. Changeling rushed forward, his purple eyes wide in surprise. "Hiela! Hiela, what is it? We- I'm here, Hiela, its okay." He insisted, running to her side and sitting down. He lightly touched her arm and found her to be shaking. The next thing he did was on instinct.

Changeling slowly wrapped his arms around the sobbing teen, patting her back as he pulled her towards him. "Hey… what's wrong, Hiela? Everything will be okay… it was just a dream." He whispered to her. Hiela turned to face him and pressed her face to his shoulder, her hands holding her arms, and cried.

After a while, Hiela cried her last tear and proceeded to sniffle. She extracted her self from Changeling's shoulder and looked up at him, blushing, and a frown on her face. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have gotten so worked up over a dream." She whispered, brushing tears from her cheeks. Changeling smiled and reached up to brush her hair from her face.

"Aww, it was nothin'. Don't worry about it, Hiela. I'm here to talk to, if you need me." He said this with the utmost sincere look on his face, causing Hiela to blush even deeper. She nodded, about to open her mouth, when she heard a loud cough from behind them.

Robin stood, sleepy eyed, followed by a grumpy looking Flare, Tempest, and an annoyed Roman, whose cloak was now on over his T-shirt and shorts. Robin strode forward; his mask slightly askew, and placed his hands on the back of the sofa. Hiela and Changeling jumped to their feet, both blushing furiously and clearing their throats.

Robin crossed his arms, sighing. He lifted one hand to his face and ran his fingers through his hair, looking down.

"W-what're you going to do to us?" Changeling asked quietly. Robin bit back a yawn, but failed. He glanced back at the other Titans, each of whose eyes were half-closed in complaint to this late meeting. Robin shrugged, at a loss for words.

"I'll think of it in the morning. Both of you, I don't want to see you out of your rooms until I call for you or for an emergency. Am I clear?" Robin muttered, turning around. His cape was draped over his shoulder in a lazy manner, and his hair was ruffled. Hiela and Changeling glanced at each other, apparently the only two who noticed or cared about these obvious flaws.

They didn't bother to look at the others, but instead quietly and quickly headed towards their rooms, glancing at each other momentarily before heading through different hallway. The remaining Titans grumbled over the lack of sleep and stumbled away to their rooms, half asleep.

Hiela jumped into her bed with a new emotion rising in her stomach. Embarrassment, yes, but that wasn't new. She felt a deep admiration toward Changeling, and gratitude at his actions. Pulling the covers close, she snuggled into bed, accompanied for the first time in a few nights with happy dreams.

Changeling, bounding into his bed, lay on his back, his hands behind his head, and a goofy grin on his face. He felt glad to have a real friend he could rely on in the team, along with someone who could rely on him. It gave him a sense… of closeness.

A darkening thought crossed him, though, and that was the punishment Robin would come up with. Hopefully he was too asleep to recognize or realize what was going on, and would get them off with a few extra hours of practice, though not even that would be pretty easy. He sighed in annoyance, turning over and switching off his light.

Roman fell into his bed, rolling his eyes at the occurrences of tonight and let sleep overcome him quickly. If anything, he really didn't want to dwell on the love problems of the Titans. He frowned at the thought of having to deal with couples in between the team. _'No…no, if you start thinking about this, you won't be able to sleep.'_ With that, he yawned and cleared his mind.

Flare walked into bed, flopped onto her bed, and fell asleep. Tempest did the same, and yet no matter how Robin tried to fall asleep, he couldn't stop worrying about how to manage the infringement of the "No Coupling" rule.

He sighed, beating his pillow and pulling his covers to his neck forcefully. "Stupid love…" he breathed, his eyes tightly shut.

_T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T_

The next morning went awkwardly. Four of the Titans made it in one by one, three of whom seated themselves at the table, and looked down expectantly at their empty plates. Tempest looked up, her nose crinkled slightly as she frowned. She looked around at Flare, Roman and Robin.

Flare grinned, crossing her arms. "Rock, paper, scissors for it?" She asked, implying breakfast. Roman shook his head, his elbow rested on the table and his chin in his hand. He lazily spun his spoon in the small cup of tea he was half-finished with. Tempest and Robin nodded, grinning, and reached over the table, their hands in the 'rock' motion.

"Rock, papers, scissors, shoot!" Tempest said, opening her palm to paper. Flare and Robin both choose scissors, to her disappointment. Both of them leaned back in their seats, smirking. "Oh, we'll see who's smug when you're done eating." She said, narrowing her eyes as she stood up. Flare and Robin glanced at each other anxiously before rising to their feet as well, and running towards the kitchen.

After cooking their own breakfast, burning it, and cooking it again, Tempest, Robin and Flare sat down to eat overcooked eggs, slightly burnt toast, and warm juice. Roman watched them silently, his eyebrow slightly lifted in amusement. Flare caught his glance and pouted, crossing her arms.

"If you think you can do any better, go ahead." She offered. Roman shook his head, looking down at his cup again. Flare rolled her eyes playfully and returned to her meal, poking the eggs with her fork. Suddenly, she looked up. "I am not, in any way, shape or form, doing the dishes!" she exclaimed, running to the sink and dropping in her dish. Robin stood up, looking down at Tempest.

"Don't _even_ think about it!" She squealed, getting to her feet. Robin frowned, but it quickly became a grin. Tempest eyed him wearily before leaving to the living room after depositing her dirty dishes. Roman followed her quickly, not wanting to have to become the dishwasher.

Robin took out his communicator and thought over who would hate the chore of washing the dishes most. In the end, he called Changeling. "Changeling, get down here. Phase one of your punishment has started." Robin said, and snapped the com shut.

Changelings' voice filtered through the communicator, whining and upset. "Phase _one_? You mean there'll be _MORE_?" Robin rolled his eyes and lowered the volume, ignoring Changeling's begs of forgiveness. He arrived at the living room and sat on the couch. Flare was lying on her back on the floor, her feet propped up on the sofa, a magazine concealing her face. Roman sat beside her feet, frowning over a passage in his book and trying to conjure something in his open hand. Tempest was sunken into her seat comfortably, the remote in her hand.

Robin looked at the T.V. and saw, to his pleasure, the news. The _Jump on Jump City _was currently on the weather. Everyone heard the dishes clang nosily behind them as Changeling washed the dishes in annoyance.

Suddenly, Flare rolled over and sprang to her feet, inspecting an article in the magazine. She sat beside Roman and set the magazine down beside her, gingerly taking the book out of his hand. He looked up in surprise.

"What?" He asked; his voice rough. Flare looked at him in total seriousness as she grasped one of his hands. She looked down sadly, sucking in a breath. Roman leaned back in his seat, his eyes wide in confusion.

"What is it?" He asked, glancing beside him at Tempest and Robin. They looked back at him in pure shock, and both moved to his side.

Flare looked up, her orange eyes boring into Roman's blue ones. "Roman… did you know… that… that because…" Flare halted, closing her eyes. Robin and Tempest looked at each other in blankness. Roman leaned farther back in his seat, dreading to hear whatever was making Flare act so anguished; or really, so dramatic.

Flare sighed and looked back up at Roman, taking a deep breath. "Did you know that 200,000 frowns can cause a brow wrinkle?" She asked, using her other hand to point at Roman's forehead.

Roman blinked.

Tempest and Robin blinked.

Roman frowned.

Flare gasped, "I'll be counting. _One_."

Tempest and Robin groaned, shaking their heads and getting to their feet. "I'm serious!" Flare responded, "It said it right here in the magazine. It's from a botox article! That's why, supposedly, people are all happy nowadays." She said, crossing her arms. Roman ducked his head, looking down at his book.

"YIKES!" Changeling yelped, and ran out of the kitchen soaking wet. "Who did it!" He cried, pointing back at the sink. Roman sunk deeper into the sofa, hiding his face deeper in his book. Flare laughed softly at Changeling's appearance as Robin ran towards the kitchen to inspect the damage.

"X'hal, Changeling, how hard could it be to do some dishes?" He asked in an exasperated tone. Roman took this as a chance to sink through the sofa and travel to his room.

Tempest looked at the now empty spot where Roman had been sitting and looked up at Flare, smirking. "I'm guessing Roman caused something to blow up, and it's entirely your fault." She said, crossing her arms. Flare held up her hands, smiling.

"Oh please, I would never do such a thing." She said, clasping her hands in front of her. Tempest rolled her silver eyes and laughed. She pointed at the book left on the couch.

"The least you could do is return his book to him." Tempest said, still laughing. Flare gasped, clamping a hand over her mouth.

"Are you kidding me? What if he thinks I'm back to annoy him? He might…-" Tempest shook her head.

"Stop being so dramatic." She concluded, looking back at the soaked Changeling. He smiled widely, glancing back at the now-broken sink. "This means I won't have to clean anymore dishes! _SCORE_! I gotta go thank Roman!" He yelped, and transformed into a dog. Shaking himself off to get rid of the water, he let out a happy yip and ran out of the living room. Flare and Tempest watched him go, laughing.

Robin frowned and called Hiela down to stop the water flow. He came back and dropped onto his seat, sighing. "You people are going to drive me crazy." He muttered, rubbing his mask. Tempest grinned, followed by a glance at Flare.

"Yes, well, we're good at that." She teased, sitting beside him. Flare picked up her magazine again and proceeded to read until she heard a cry from the kitchen. She looked back, rolling her eyes.

"What now?" She asked, looking expectantly at Robin, who had a look on his face that showed he dreaded finding out whatever was going on. He grumbled something about one problem leading into a whole new one before reluctantly getting to his feet. Leading the way into the kitchen, Robin called ahead and asked what was wrong.

"It's _Changeling_! Robin, he's_ frozen_!" Hiela squeaked; her voice choked with tears. Robin looked back at Tempest and Flare in disbelief. Both girls snickered before heading to the kitchen, Flare watchful of the many puddles of water that now littered the floor.

Sure enough, there was Changeling, in the form of a dog, sitting in a block of ice. Robin moaned as he kneeled beside the green dog. "Flare, unfreeze him." He commanded after chipping off some ice with a birdarang. Flare nodded and seated herself on the counter above Changeling, and created a small flame in her hands. Robin looked at her in exasperation.

She blinked, "What!" Flare asked innocently, the fire steadily burning away at the ice. Robin frowned at her, and made an upward motion.

"Can't you speed up the process?" He asked, raking one hand through his hair. Flare frowned, shrugged, and nodded.

"One burnt Changeling, coming right up." She muttered, blasting the block of ice with fire. The whole thing melted at once and splashed to the ground, leaving the dog shaking and shivering, not to mention cowering away from the flames. Flare closed her hands into a fist and the fire stopped. Changeling yowled, still in his dog form, and ran around Hiela nervously.

"Dude, I swear never to creep up on you again, just please don't freeze me!" He yipped, transforming back into a human. Hiela held her hand to her mouth and suppressed a giggle. Flare looked down at the puddle at her feet and flung fire into it, evaporating the water.

Tempest smiled and nudged Robin. "Whatever happened to the no relationship rule?" She asked, motioning towards Hiela and Changeling. Robin blinked, looking down at her in shock.

"Well… they're just friends, aren't they?" He asked, his voice faltering. Tempest rolled her silver eyes and shrugged.

"If you say so…"

Roman entered, and looked up at one of the alarm sensors at the top corner of the kitchen. "Something's happening at the museum." He uttered; his voice composed. The Titans looked at him in confusion, yet flew into action when he pointed upward and the alarm started blaring. Robin ran to the computer where he analyzed the situation.

"Got it right on the dot, Roman; some guy who calls himself Tiempo is trying to steal authentic Renaissance jewels." He said, and then motioned down to the garage. "Here's a chance to try out our bikes." He said, grinning. The other Titans grinned back at him, a mischievous glint to all their eyes- minus Hiela.

"Changeling, get Hiela to the museum. Titans, to the garage!" Robin commanded, following Changeling and Hiela into the elevator. Flare took one glance at the almost-full compartment and shook her head, and ran towards the stairs. Tempest sighed and ran after her. Roman looked at the two and followed.

"Hold on." He said, taking both of them by their elbows. "_Aldruon Enlenthranal_." He said, and walked straight into a black void. Flare and Tempest squeaked at the sudden lack of floor, but Roman walked straight through the air. In a second, they were walking in the garage. Roman let go of the two, who blinked in surprise, and made it over to his motorcycle.

Robin was already leaping onto his and clicked a couple buttons on the headboard. All the Titans toppled as a huge door opened upwards and a Chunnel opened in front of the vehicles. "Don't just stand there, Titans, get a move on!" He called, and grabbed his helmet. He slung it on, and zoomed out into the Chunnel. Roman pulled out a black helmet and put it on reluctantly, then gassed the bike and tore out of the garage. Flare looked at her flamed helmet in contempt. "I'm going to look like a driving flame." She hissed, weary of being clad entirely in fire. Sighing, she pulled it on and started the bike, at first leaning to the side yet quickly finding her balance.

Tempest shrugged as she pulled on her lightning-streaked helmet. Her finger grazed a button near the back, and she gasped as she saw the stats of the other Titans, and a small microphone appeared on the inside of the helmet. "Amazing!" she cried. Robin, Roman and Flare skidded to a halt upon hearing her.

Robin quickly reacted, switching his own helmet on. "Button's on the bottom, near the back, Titans. Nice job, Tempest!" He continued onward, now exiting the Chunnel as the Titans adapted their helmets. Changeling helped Hiela to her seat and jumped on in front of her, and sped out of the garage smiling; Hiela was gripping him tightly, whimpering.

One by one, the Titans arrived on the scene. Robin was speaking with the police by the time Tempest had arrived, and they were shortly joined by the rest of the team, which comprised of Hiela and Changeling.

Changeling got off, rubbing his stomach where Hiela had pressed him tightly during the turns. He grinned sheepishly when she turned to him, and offered his hand to her. She took it, and he pulled her off. "That was… exhilarating." Hiela said breathlessly. Changeling smiled softly and bit back his answer of _'Like you'_ since Robin was walking over to the Titans.

"Four people are in a coma. Nobody knows how it happened, they just approached Tiempo. Roman is going to stay with them and try to… Well, I'm not exactly sure, but he knows what he's doing. Flare, Tempest and Hiela are going to go through the exits all throughout the museum. There're three, obviously, and Changeling and I are going through the ceiling." He looked at his fellow Titans, all except Roman, who was sitting cross-legged behind four police officers, his brow knitted in concentration. They looked back at him, nodding, and waited his final command.

"Don't attack until I say 'go'." He said, then turned back towards the ceiling, used a grapple, and shot up. Tempest, Hiela and Flare each looked at each other before running towards the entrances and exits. Flare took the back door, Tempest the front, and Hiela the emergency exit. Changeling transformed into a hawk and flew up after Robin and transformed back into himself quietly.

"Do you think it was a smart idea to separate?" He whispered. Robin nodded, pointing down at a solemn-moving figure in the huge skylights of the museum.

"He takes people down by surprising them. This way, we can surprise him." Changeling nodded, understanding.

"So when do we make our move?" He asked. Robin looked at him, his face expressing a "duh" look.

"When we surround him." He said, a bit slowly. Changeling frowned and grumbled something about just being curious until Robin pulled off a vent from the air conditioners. He stepped aside for Changeling, who became a fly and zoomed through the vents and out one of the crevices, buzzing above Tiempo's bright blond hair. Robin crawled after him, his soft-sounding motions matching his breathing.

He glanced through one of the open vents and saw Hiela crawling into position on Tiempo's left side. Seating himself, he turned to face his other side. Robin saw Flare wriggling through an exhibit of knights around the table and nodded to himself. Now he needed to find Tempest. Squirming through the opening, Robin glanced ahead. Finding Tempest hidden within some giant plant exhibits, he nodded, and glanced back down at Tiempo.

By now, he had closed his pack with the jewels inside them, and was heaving it up to his shoulder. Robin positioned himself over one of the openings, and took in a breath to call out to his team. Kicking open the vent, he swung down, pulled out a grappling hook, shot it at Tiempo and called out to the teens stationed around the villain.

"Teen Titans, go!"

Tiempo shot around, held up his staff, and wrapped the hook around it. He swung downward with the bird-a-rang wrapped around the hourglass at the head of the staff, causing Robin to crash downwards, growling a string of Tameranian curses on the way. Robin reacted quickly, though, and stood up, and threw a set of bird-a-rangs and exploding disks at Tiempo, who countered them with his staff as well, grinning. His bright blue eyes gleamed with deception as he glanced at the hourglass before attacking.

Flare came from behind him, rising her leg to kick Tiempo, but he grabbed her ankle and wretched her forward, causing her to topple into Robin. "This isn't going too well," She muttered, rolling off him. Robin scowled again, this time in English, before rising to his feet.

"Something isn't right. He's predicting our moves. Watch." He pointed as Tempest rose from her hiding place and raised her hands to attack. Her fingers cackled with electricity, and yet Tiempo was already on the move after a quick glance at his staff. Changeling, in the form of a dog, ran through this, and grabbed Tiempo's bag of jewels.

Tiempo saw this, though, as readily as he saw the other Titan's attacks. Raising his hand, he snapped his fingers, and Tempests' attack was stopped; or more precisely, postponed, as she proceeded to move in slow motion. He turned back and looked down at the glaring purple-eyed dog, which growled and scampered away with the bag of gems. Tiempo waved his hand after him, and as Tempest became slower, Changeling moved in reverse. The little green dog stepped backwards towards Tiempo as Hiela blasted shreds of ice in Tiempo's direction. He turned and smirked, opening his palm in her direction. The ice stopped in place, and changed directions, now facing Robin and Flare. The two glanced at each other before leaping in opposite directions, and the ice was flung in their path. Changeling stood beside Tiempo and released the bag. Tiempo grasped the bag and leaned forward, and ruffled Changeling's head.

"Stay, you mutt." He muttered, and walked forward. Tempest was still standing straight, her hands sparkling, and trying to get her feet to move forward. "You should chill out, cutie." Tiempo smirked, and tilted his head in her direction. The ice, still transfixed in the air, flung in her direction. Flare turned to throw fire in the direction to melt the ice, and Robin shot a grappling hook at Tempest's waist to pull her away.

Tiempo saw both these attacks. He turned, seeing that each of the Titans were occupied, and prepared to run for the door when he met Hiela's fist.

"Release my friends!" She said, her blue eyes narrowed into slits. He rubbed his forehead angrily, as her fists froze over, and she stood eye-to-eye with Tiempo. He smirked, waving his hand across her face. She gasped, and felt her feet loose their ability to move. He looked into her eyes, and grasped her face with one hand, and dug through her past, holding his staff to her forehead. He frowned when he couldn't find any depressing or dark memories, and shoved her away.

"Your past is hidden. I would help you find it, but seeing as we're enemies…" He winked at her and picked up the bag again. Now, though, the Titans were back in motion, and Tempest safely in a corner of the museum. Changeling struggled to get out of his dog-from, and once he did, he was free of the time-frozen spell. He ran over to Hiela, who was grasping her head and shivering, flashes of her memories now fleeting through her head due to Tiempo's meddling.

Changeling lifted his gaze to Tiempo and snarled, transforming into a wolf and charging forward. Tiempo lifted his staff and smacked Changeling as he leapt, causing him to skid aside. Flare frowned and raised a ring fire around Tiempo, who turned around, widely searching for the person who had cast the flaming cage.

Tiempo narrowed his bright blue eyes upon seeing another teenager in the circle with him. Roman looked up at him, his own bright eyes covered in a void of darkness. His hands were in shadowy fists as he glared his opponent. The white-clad boy looked into his hourglass and glanced to his sides, and sure enough, the fires lifted and Flare and Robin stepped through. Tiempo smirked, taking in their pasts.

"Oh, I'm going to have fun with the three of you." He said, turning around to look at each of them. Robin glanced at Roman, who nodded. He phased through the floor, and Flare widened the cage of fire, her eyes engulfed in flames. Robin ran forward, his fists closed, at Tiempo. Flare placed her hands on the floor and ran a river of fire at his feet. Tiempo turned around and grabbed Robin, swinging him around by his cape, and tossed him out of the cage-like fire. Robin rolled over, the flames dying immediately against the material of his outfit, and coughed. He turned and jumped to his feet and ran back into the flames, covering his face with his arms. Tiempo turned to avoid the fire Flare had cast.

"Titans, we gotta get that staff away!" He yelled, half-choked with smoke. Roman appeared behind Tiempo, lashing out at him with a kick, yet was countered with the hourglass striking his knee. Tiempo grinned, pulling back at Roman's darkest memories, his deepest secrets.

"Well, your time on Earth has been a really bad one. I pity for your mother, giving birth to an evil little kid like you." Tiempo taunted. Roman clenched his teeth in rage and threw a punch at Tiempo, who grabbed his fist inches from his face. Roman fell to his knees as Tiempo replayed his worst fear, the nightmare that was his life from 8 years ago as vividly as it had just happened. Roman let out a tortured yell as Tiempo watched him writhe, and crumple to his knees, his attention focused on rummaging into his life time.

'_Crack!'_ Robin's staff smacked against the back of Tiempo's neck as Flare ran forward and grasped his staff, wrenching it from his grip. Roman fell back, gasping, and edged away, getting to his feet slowly. Flare glanced at him before turning her attention to a furious Tiempo, whose eyes were focused greedily on the staff.

"Don't let him touch it!" Robin yelled, running behind Tiempo. He pulled out a freezing disc, then glanced at it, and turned around, still jogging backwards, to inspect Hiela and Changeling. Hiela, lightly touching her forehead, was tapping Changeling's shoulder, whom was sprawled on the floor, a knight's suit of armor toppled over him. He turned around, and glanced around to find Tempest, who was still where he had left her after picking her up from the slow-motion trick. She was recovering, shaking her head now. Roman was leaning against a wall for support, his hood pulled up and his fists clenched in rage.

He turned back to Flare, who was darting through the museum exhibits with the staff clutched to her chest. Tiempo was thrusting things aside to reach her, his white and gold costume becoming a blur due to his frantic movements.

"Duck!" He yelled at Flare, causing Tiempo to turn to him as he aimed the freeze-disk. Roman appeared behind him, his eyes slits, and darkness seeping from his cloak. He grasped Tiempo by the shoulders and dragged him into the darkness beneath him. Tiempo's hands flailed outwards, his shriek filling the destroyed museum. "Roman- wait! No!" Robin added to his call, and pointing at the hole. "Flare, stop him!" He commanded.

Flare threw the staff at Robin and dove towards the void, and grasped Tiempo's hand, the last thing visible as the portal-like hole was closing. She reached down until she felt Roman's hand clutching Tiempo, whom was reaching out at Flare as a leech would, screaming. Robin came to her side, and both of them pulled the two brawling teens out of the void, and Flare wretched her arm away, gaping at the scratch-marks left by Tiempo. Robin grabbed Tiempo and pulled him away, glaring at Roman. He dragged a wide-eyed Tiempo through the museum until he came to Hiela and Changeling.

Changeling rubbed his dazed head, and turned to Hiela. "You! Are you okay? I saw Tiempo grab you and I-" Hiela nodded, taking a breath as another fleeting memory flashed before her, and she saw the snapping of ice and splashing of water.

"I- I'm fine." She answered shakily. Robin was hand-cuffing Tiempo, who was now recovering from the death-like encounter Roman had given him. He turned to Hiela upon hearing her statement, and shook his head.

"That's what you think, sweet stuff. You need my help whether you want it or not; I'm the only one who can show you the truth." He whispered to her, his grimace slowly becoming a smirk. Robin frowned and shoved Tiempo forward, glancing at Hiela, who was looking at Tiempo fearfully.

"Don't talk to her." Robin snapped at Tiempo, and helped Changeling to his feet.

Hiela looked at Flare, who was helping Tempest to her feet. The Titans looked at each other wearily; save Roman, who was storming from the museum, dark energy cackling in the air around him. Robin continued forward after Roman, dragging Tiempo along, who had kept his gaze on Hiela. Changeling felt himself growling at his blue-eyed smugness, and proceeded forward with the other boys. Tempest, her arm around Flare's shoulders for support, called Hiela over.

"What was that guy talking about?" Tempest asked in a sluggish manner. Flare shifted beneath her, looking up at Hiela, and nodding. Hiela blushed lightly, shrugging. Both girls looked up at her expectantly, and she sighed.

"It was nothing important. I can tell you guys when we get back to the Tower." She said, turning towards the exit. Flare huffed, and pulled Tempests' arm higher and stood up straighter. She frowned, and stepped forward with Tempest.

"The least you could do is help me out." She muttered. Hiela turned around, nodded, and whispered an apology as she ran over to Tempest's other shoulder and hooked her arm around her own neck. With that, the Titanettes left the museum, and joined their fellow Titans outside.

Roman had left the side of the police and was standing off to the side, trying to get to his motorcycle but his path was obstructed by the four whom he had saved. Flare, Hiela and Tempest walked over to Robin and Changeling. Robin had shoved Tiempo into the squad car and turned to his team. He looked at Tempest, who stood up a bit straighter. Robin frowned and looked back at her motorcycle.

"Roman, come here." He called, turning to face him. Roman turned and practically ran away from the four people thanking him, his face dully flushed. "I need you to teleport Tempest's bike back to the garage. I'll drive her back home. The rest of you, I want you to patrol for an hour," Robin was interrupted by a groan of protest. He held up his hand and the Titans settled down, muttering quietly about the amount of work they'd already done. "As I was saying, patrol for an hour. Watch for any civilian help that is needed. Then report back to the Tower. Roman, after you get Tempest's bike in the garage I want you to go out there, too. Hiela, when you're done, I'd like for you to come talk with me." His gaze rested on her, causing her to shuffle her feet in discomfort. "Roman, too."

Robin shifted his gaze to Tempest. "Come with me, Tempest." He said, opening his palm to her. Flare and Hiela stepped aside and Tempest stepped forward sluggishly, and Robin hefted her into his arms. Roman glanced at Tempest.

"That should wear off in an hour or two, you know." He informed, and turned to the motorcycles. Hiela sat behind Changeling again, and Robin placed Tempest in front of him to keep her steady. Roman stood over Tempest's bike, and grasped the handles. "Allez à A garagem". The handles disintegrated, followed by the rest of the bike, and he hopped onto his cycle.

Flare rode up beside him, her helmet in place, and tapped the back of her helmet. The microphone came up. "I'll race you downtown." She said, gassing the bike. Roman nodded, pulling on his own helmet. He turned to gaze at her when another bike sped ahead of them, and Changeling's voice filtered through the speakers.

"I bet I can beat both of you!" He yelled, ignoring the squeals of protest from Hiela. Flare and Roman shook their heads, smirking.

"Yeah, right, if downtown was that way." Flare said, revving her bike. Roman followed suit. Robin sped away, heading towards the Tower.

"Will you guys just go already?" He asked, glancing back momentarily at the two Titans still waiting for each other.

Roman and Flare both sped off in smoke at the mention of go. Changeling had tried to turn back around and get into the direction of downtown, but was caught in traffic. "Thank goodness." Hiela muttered. Changeling pouted, sighing. "But Hieeela," He whined, "I wanted to beeeat them." Flare and Roman caught this and smirked, both neck and neck through the City, taking alleyways and detours.

"Titans, don't forget your priorities. Make sure you protect the people." Robin reminded them. The Titans all groaned out a yeah, and slowed down, more attentive to cats in trees, children crossing streets, and old women loosing their purses.

"What an eventful city…" Roman muttered, revving up towards the downtown plaza. Flare sped past beside him, her helmeted- head turning slightly in his direction.


	5. Chapter 5

Teen Titans: Revolution

Chapter 5: Frenzied Uncertainty

Tiempo paced back and forth in his jail cell. In his mind, he went over the six Teen Titans, licking his dry lips as he turned again to walk back to the opposite side of the small room. He looked up, inspecting the hard, rickety cot that was now his bed, and the small toilet, visible from the outside. Other than that, there wasn't much occupying his tiny area.

Tiempo scowled, and ignored that. He had to focus. The moment he escaped, the Titans would be on him like bees on honey. He had to be ready. He **would** be ready. He'd have a plan. A sly grin appeared on Tiempo's bandaged cheek; Ryand'r's birdarang had slit through the soft skin.

Roman. He was an easy Titan. His past was filled to the brim with tortured memories. A few twists here, a little tapping there, and Tiempo could create some truly nasty visions.

Flare. He had seen that girl's fear, and would have to work a bit harder to exploit it, since she herself had forgotten it.

Changeling. His weakness was a strong point since it was another Titan. That shouldn't be too hard.

Robin. Robin's weakness was his team. If the team got hurt… he would do anything to help his teammates. Who knows, maybe he'd go as far as death.

Tempest. Her weakness… Tiempo frowned, finding that he hadn't been able to figure that out. He had stupidly frozen her in time without analyzing her for future reference. The blond boy shrugged off the thought, pivoting again to cross the tiny cell as he returned to the remaining Titan.

Hiela. The blue girl had wrenched his heart; her poor mind had locked away her memories. Not that they were bad; unlike the dark teen of the team, they seemed to be pleasant up until her blackout. Tiempo, of course, being a manipulator of time –he smiled proudly at this title- had seen everything that occurred to her during the blackout; her death, her rebirth. He could use this girl to his advantage if he worked out the kinks; like Robin's over-protection of his team.

He frowned, remembering Changeling's own attraction to the girl. Looking up, he realized he had met the prison cell's wall, and abruptly stopped. If only he had his staff! It would make things so much easier… Tiempo clenched his fist, remembering the flame-clad girl's escape with his hourglass-topped staff, the center of his power. If only he hadn't been so caught up with torturing that other kid… Tiempo smirked, shaking his head. It was worth the teenager's tormented appearance.

Tiempo sat on the small cot, going over some ideas to snag his staff back. He'd need to use someone who had access to the Tower. Along with this, he wanted to get Hiela. The girl's innocence had given him a sense of… of what? Tiempo shrugged, just knowing he was going to include Hiela in the stealing back of his staff.

"It's about time you stopped… You were making me dizzy…" Came a deep, guttural voice from the cell across from his. Tiempo smirked, and then lay back on the cot, closing his eyes. He grinned, the plan forming in his mind. Soon, it would be over with. He'd be out of jail; Hiela'd have her memory and fall for him for returning her memory and showing her the wonders of the evil side-

Wait… that fell under the category of daydreaming, not master plan. Tiempo stopped himself, and sighed. He had to sleep. All this thinking was making him lightheaded.

"Frickin' huge-ego villains…" He heard the thief in the cell across from him mutter again, and twitched, his brows coming together. Before he left this prison, some people would have to be taken care of…

_T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T_

Roman skidded into the garage, swerving around in a circle to face the opening. Flare's own bike followed, still going about fifty miles an hour, and stopped an inch away from Roman's motorcycle. She tore off her helmet; her eyes narrowed, and opened her mouth to object Roman's obvious smirk, apparent now that he had calmly taken off his helmet.

What she said would have to wait. Changeling cruised in, his motor echoing through the garage. Roman smoothly got off his bike, the smirk vanishing. Flare sighed, jumping off her own bike.

"I would have beaten you if you hadn't cut me off." She muttered, walking beside Roman as they made their way to the elevator. Roman, who was about to reply, was cut off by the green teenager leaping off his motorcycle. Changeling bounded up beside them, clutching Hiela's wrist to keep her from toppling over. She had a dazed expression on her face due to Changeling's driving.

"Jeez, you guys SUCK at monitoring. You just sped through the city, me and Hiela had to deal with SO many cats in trees it's not even funny!" Hiela twitched at the mention of cats, sick of the furry creatures after being chased by a monster of a cat down an alley. Supposedly, the cat had belonged to a twelve-year old kid, but when she tried to deliver the animal to the child, he and his group of followers had vanished, their laughter still ringing through the street. Roman, again trying to speak, was cut off by Flare.

"_What_! I spent my time helping these positively _enormous_ old women try to get across Fifth Street; _during_ rush hour!" She walked into the elevator and backed into a corner. Roman waited for Hiela to walk in before entering himself, opening his mouth to respond.

"Please, Flare. You stopped once. Hiela and me had to work for both you and Roman! _AND_ Tempest and Robin, come to think about it!" Changeling's arms were waving, taking up even more space in the already constricted elevator. The Titans were too tired to take the stairs, and Roman wasn't even thinking about teleporting. Flare crossed her arms, frowning. Roman had given up trying to speak, and instead took in Flare's defeat of the race.

The four Titans let out a sigh of relief upon arrival at the living room. Each of them slumped out of the elevator, too beat to fight about who had done more, and separated. Flare and Changeling made their ways to their rooms, resuming their squabble over who'd done more through the hallway.

Roman, though, along with Hiela, moved towards the sofa, awaiting Robin's call. Hiela sat with her hands in her lap. Roman stood, leaning against the giant windows of the Tower. His hooded head looked out over the bay. Hiela was restless; she didn't know whether to speak to him or not. He wasn't making any advances on a conversation, so she just sat, an uncomfortable silence settling around them.

Finally, the door behind them slid open. Both teens turned to face Robin, a frown on his face. He looked up at Roman. "You." He said. Roman pulled his hood back, his brow raised in confusion.

"Me…" He said, his voice rising in a concerned question. Robin rubbed his temples with his fists, sighing. He glanced behind him, as if worried.

"I can't get Tempest to speed up all the way! Tiempo's stupid enchantment keeps her stuck at times. Fix her!" Robin said, pointing behind him. Roman frowned at the command. He walked ahead, hissing a _'Yes, master.'_ after passing Robin. Robin glanced behind him, frowning deeper.

He looked back at Hiela, and motioned for her to follow him. She stood up and walked after him, her hands clasped in front of her.

"How was patrolling?" Robin quickly asked, turning a corner. Hiela followed him, pivoting on one foot to turn in the same direction so sharply. She shrugged, searching for the right words.

"It was… challenging. A few children thought it would be funny for me to chase the alleyway cat." She said, sighing at the though. Robin frowned, stopping at a doorway. Hiela stopped behind him, feeling his restlessness. "Roman should be able to heal Tempest, Robin. There's no need to worry." She reminded. Robin turned sharply, wincing.

"It's not just her." He countered, frowning. He sighed and entered the room, office-like. "Just take a seat…" He muttered, falling into a hard-looking straight backed chair. He rested an elbow on his desk and rested his hand on his forehead, thinking. Hiela followed him wearily, sitting down in front of him in a softer chair. She felt her body pulse in relief; she was exhausted.

Robin glanced up at her, leaning back in his seat. "So, what did you think of Tiempo?" He asked her, crossing his arms. Hiela shrugged involuntarily. She frowned in thought.

"He was a … determined villain. He had everything planned out… or knew everything that we had planned out." She said, giving him hard facts. Robin nodded, taking in her answer.

"You told me about him. I want to know what you thought _of_ him." Robin repeated, crossing his arms and sitting up straighter. Hiela felt herself go rigid, and she squirmed under his gaze.

"Tiempo… was daring. He was also… nosy. He tried to unlock something. I don't know what it was." She answered. Robin nodded, his mask narrowed in thought.

"What was he trying to unlock? And what did he mean about him being the only one that could help you?" Robin asked wearily. He noticed Hiela's hesitation.

"My memory. I can't remember much… of anything. Up to a certain point, that is." She said, dropping her gaze to her hands, folded in her lap. "He started searching… and I saw things. Parents, family. Lights." She whispered. Robin nodded sympathetically.

"I understand about the memory thing, but you need to build up resistance to things like that. Maybe you should meditate- I'm sure Roman does. Get some tips, but just learn to block your mind from attacks like that. Do I make myself clear?" Robin asked.

"Crystal." Hiela answered. At the sound of the word, she winced visibly, though she didn't understand why. Robin noticed this, and his mask rose in concern. "I mean- Yes, I understand." She said, clearing her throat. Robin nodded, and pointed at the door.

"I need to talk to Roman. Tell him to come up here the moment Tempest is okay." He said, getting out of his seat and turning to a bookcase. Hiela nodded, pursing her lips, and leaving the room before finding out what he was looking at.

She aimlessly wandered downstairs, where she vaguely remembered the clinic being. She glanced around and saw the garage door up ahead, and the red crossed-door beside her. She tapped the door and heard Tempest mumble something. Hiela took it as a '_come in'_ and entered.

Roman was sitting in a chair in front of Tempest's bed. He glanced at Hiela, and stood up, turning back to Tempest. "… You're okay now?" He asked, frowning. Tempest nodded, shrugging.

"I'll be fine. Thanks a lot, Roman." She said, lying back onto the starch- white pillows. Roman nodded and left, leaving Hiela and Tempest. Wearily, he made his way up to Robin's office. He slumped down in front of him, and waited further instruction.

"Tempest is fine…" he added, pulling his hood up to mask his closed eyes. Robin nodded, pressing his knuckles to his own eyes.

"Listen, Roman, about earlier with that portal thing…"

_T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T_

Hiela sat next to Tempest, smiling. "You gave Robin one heck of a scare…" She said. Tempest smiled, and looked away, hiding her blush. She nodded, her silver hair falling forward.

"He told me his first name. It's a … _glorious_ name." She said, grinning at the inside joke she held with Robin. Hiela waited, her brow arched in amusement.

"Oh, really." She said, smiling. Tempest glanced at her, grinning back.

"Yeah. It's Ryand'r. He tried to get my name in exchange but… well; it's funnier to have him try to guess. Anyway, I didn't catch why he wanted you and Roman upstairs. Did something go wrong?" She asked; her lips pursed in concern.

Hiela shrugged, showing her lack of interest on the subject. "Tiempo started meddling in our thoughts… Roman cracked and I…" She waved her hand, as if saying that was all Tempest had to know.

Tempest nodded, understanding. She slid off the bed, and got to her feet. "C'mon, I'm fine, so let's get out of here. Hospitals always make me feel sicker." Tempest said, shivering. Hiela nodded gratefully, and the two girls made their way upstairs.

Flare and Changeling joined them on the trip back, refreshed, and obviously over their previous argument. They all lounged on the sofa. Robin came in, twitching slightly, frowning deeply, and his brow furrowed. The small conversation with Roman hadn't gone so well. Flare glanced behind him, wondering where the final Titan went. Robin glanced at her, shrugging.

Flare turned back, and glanced at the book still on the sofa. She reached for it and took it into her lap, and opened it. Tempest sat in between her and Hiela, and Changeling sat as a tiger-cub at their feet, flicking his long, striped tail over their knees. The silver haired teen looked at the small black book as Flare twisted it up-side down and in every other direction.  
"How strange, I have no idea what any of this means." She muttered. Tempest rolled her eyes, sighing.

"Of course you wouldn't. They wouldn't let something like whatever's written in there be able to be read by just everyone." She said matter of-factly. Flare smirked, glancing at Tempest.

"Since when did you become the smart one?" She teased, shutting the book with a dusty smack. Robin plucked the book from her hand and set it back on the sofa.

"She's right. You're probably not even supposed to look at whatever's in there." He said, glancing at the T.V. He glanced at Changeling, and pointed at the small box set in the wall beneath the huge screen. "Hey Changeling, wanna try out that new Gamebox-X-I?" Changeling's form became human again, and he looked at Robin with wide eyes. Robin continued, "Nightwing said it was a good thing to have, though I don't know how it functions exactly…"

Changeling's focus went from the Gamebox 6 and back to Robin. "Dude, that is not a Gamebox X I, it's a Gamebox six, and it's not even heard of yet! I didn't realize they had a four! How did your dad… you're asking me if I want to play! Bring out the controller!" Changeling yelped, pushing himself in between the girls to make a seat for him.

With much protest, the girls finally moved out so the other two teens could play their game. Before the boys could get too engrossed in beating each other, Robin turned and picked up Roman's book. He tossed it at Flare, landing it squarely at her stomach, and causing her to nearly topple over with the excess force.

"Give that back, will you?" He asked, then turned back to try to figure out the controller. Flare let out a whoosh of air, and looked at the book that was in her arms. She saluted mockingly at their team leader, and robotically left the room. Tempest and Hiela followed, laughing slightly.

"That Robin is so selfish. He got himself and the others something to do, but what are we supposed to do?" She asked, crossing her arms. The book was squeezed in between her belt.

Tempest stopped walking towards Roman's room, her head bowed in thought. "I never thought about that. What do we do when we're not crime fighting?" She asked. Hiela responded, her voice monotonous,

"Train."

Flare laughed, nodding in agreement. They arrived at Roman's door, and Hiela tapped on his door. They heard a grumble of contempt, then something that sounded like, "Go away". Flare frowned, and waited while the other two girls shrugged and turned away.

"Open the door Roman; I've got something that belongs to you." She said. Roman, once again, told her to go away. Tempest turned around, sighing.

"Come on, Flare. The guy's having a fit. Let him sulk." She said, and turned back. Flare bit her lip to keep from grinning, and heard a rustle from inside the room. She pursed her lips upon realizing it wasn't English.

"Azar Zenthar." The phrase was repeated, and Flare had enough waiting outside the door; she was overwhelmed with curiosity about what was going on inside. She took her communicator out, and opened the bottom part of it. Hiela stopped, her own curiosity blooming.

"What are you doing?" She asked. Flare turned towards her, and held the communicator against the upper part of the wall beside the door.

"Haven't you guys read those papers Robin put in our room? We have override codes built in." She replied, watching as she heard the door click out of its lock. Roman appeared then, standing in the sliding doorway, his face shaded within his hood. He glared down at Flare, who was surprised at his appearance.

Roman snatched the communicator and deleted his override code from the system. Flare gasped, reaching for the small device.

"Hey!" she objected. Roman snatched the book from her other hand and tossed it back onto his bed. The moment he turned his head, Flare realized something wrong with him. Roman was as angry as he had been back at the museum; his face was drawn in a frown. "…Roman?" She asked, reaching to pull his hood away. He grabbed her wrist, turning his attention back to her, and was concealed again.

"When I tell you to go away, it's best for you to listen to me." He hissed, smacking her communicator into her palm. Flare winced, more in fright than pain. She kept her gaze directed at him.

"Well I'm not very good at listening," she replied monotonously as he released her wrist. Roman felt himself twitch, his anger mounting for this mortal girl in front of him, yet moreover, he was surprised. Tempest and Hiela had rounded the hallway, and were now peeking around the corner, their eyes wide and yet neither of them made a move to help Flare.

She defiantly stared up at him and he opened his mouth to reply to her comment. _'Why are you so annoying?'_ he spoke to her telepathically instead. Flare, obviously, was not ready for this, for she whipped her head around, confused by the voice.

Roman wasn't about to get his answer. The alarm ran throughout tower with fury, its blare deafening the four titans in the hallway. Roman stepped out of his doorway, breaking his gaze with Flare. He rubbed his eyes, trying to reassure himself that they were back to their crystal blue, not his fighting-mode black… not that he preferred that color. He glanced behind him and saw Flare, still gazing at him, but now moving slowly towards him, up to the living room where Robin would give them all commands.

They didn't have to.

"All Titans, report to Jump City prison IMMIEDIATLY. Prepare yourselves!" Robin's voice filled the hallways; his own intercom system overriding the alarm. Roman glanced at the three girls around him.

"Come with me." He commanded, opening his palm. Flare refused to touch him, even as Hiela and Tempest both took his palms. Roman rolled his eyes and moved Tempest's hand to his other arm, and reached out, grabbing the back of Flare's shirt, and pulled her against him as he teleported them to the jail.

In the moment the Titanettes had blinked, Roman had teleported them in front of Jump City prison. Streams of thieves and under-class villains swarmed around the jail, grinning, screaming, and laughing. Flare's hands burst into flame, Roman launched a wall around the area, and Tempest took off into the air, using a stormy cloud as her lift. Hiela stood frozen, her eyes locked on the gaping hole in the jail.

Cell 23550032.

Intensive security.

The H.I.V.E. agents.

"Hiela, move!" She heard Roman's voice pierce through her thoughts, and felt his arm snatch her shoulders and thrust her down. A barrage of bullets swarmed past the two, now rolling on the ground. "This isn't a time for daydreaming!" He snapped, pointing at the prisoners who had acquired the guards' weapons. More laser-like bullets blasted through the air. Tempest was doing her best to shield the titans, swerving the paths of the bullets using gusts of air. Roman's wall was stretching around the prison, and yet the more violent villains were breaking through; monsters that could fly, crawl beneath or even walk through the barrier.

Roman stood up, lifting Hiela to her feet. She pointed at the enclosure, but Roman had already turned away. Hiela frowned, and looked back at the street. Changeling and Robin were speeding towards the jail, trying to round stray villains back into Roman's shield.

"_OMPH!"_ Flare flew through the space beside Hiela, clutching her stomach as she crashed into the ground. Hiela looked up, gasping as she saw a fist coming toward her. She crossed her arms in an "X" shape in front of her, and spears of ice flung themselves in front of her to form a shield. The inmate's fist slammed into the ice and ricocheted back, causing him to tumble back in pain. Flare stood up, dusting herself off. A tear ripped through her black pants, yet she seemed unscathed by the blow otherwise.

"Hiela, you need to pay attention! We can't do this with three Titans." She panted, motioning towards Roman and Tempest. Roman was surrounded; Tempest was rushing through the prison, trying to round up the villains into the still in-tact part of the jail. Robin suddenly tore through the shield, leaving Changeling behind to secure the few villains who had made it through the shield.

"Find the H.I.V.E. agents! Don't let them escape!" He yelled. His voice was carried through the whole prison; all the Titans heard them. Roman looked up, trying to concentrate while defending himself from the oncoming attacks.

"If- you'd get these- idiots away from me," Roman paused to round-kick a persistent man trying to use his chains as whips, "I could find them." He announced, turning as another body moved toward him. Before lashing out, Roman realized it was Flare, and turned again. To his shock, though, a ring of fire exploded in around him.

"Find them now!" He heard Flare shout. Roman coughed, and sat cross-legged to avoid the billowing, acrid smoke. He closed his mind to his surroundings and started to pry through the jail with his powers; peeling away each floor one by one.

Robin glanced at the ring of fire encircling Roman, and the weary villains pacing around it. Flare's eyes narrowed as the petty thieves tried to jump through the flames and the fire encircled them, never completely burning them; always harming them.

Tempest was beyond anger now. The more powerful, flying villains now taunted her with their speed and agility. Zooming through her mode of airborne transport, she blasted the fliers with searing bolts of lightning. They dropped like flies; Tempests' glowing silver eyes narrowed as they each hit the ground, as if saying _'serves you right.'_

Changeling ran up beside Hiela and skidded to a halt. She looked at Changeling and grabbed his hand, then proceeded to run into the prison. "Where are we going!" Changeling asked, glancing back at the on-going fight between the remaining Titans. Hiela looked back at him, eyes scanning the perimeter.

"I know the H.I.V.E. is still here. This jail probably holds a lot of their teachers and classmates." Hiela said, rushing through her words, "We have to keep them from freeing anymore people." She said, turning. Changeling swerved, looking at her in question until she raised her hands.  
From her palms came ice and she created a wall of frozen water where the gaping holes once were. Villains still trying to escape struggled against the wall, their mouths hanging open in a mixture of dismay and confusion as Hiela continued to block their way. Changeling looked ahead and became a wolf, growling deeply at the approaching men and women, who gasped and backed up, retreating wearily. Hiela ran forward, and with Changeling, forced them into a cell, sealing that with ice as well.

Changeling looked around. "How are we going to know where to look for them?" He asked in exasperation. Hiela looked around, then flinched as she heard an explosion farther ahead.

"Follow the booms." She replied and started running towards the noise. Changeling growled and followed her, worried about leaving the team behind under such extreme conditions.

"Roman would have found them." He reminded her, trotting beside her in his wolf form. Hiela shook her head, glancing down at him, her gaze firm.

"He wouldn't have done it in time. They'd be gone, and we'd have to stay up all night searching." She said defiantly. They came to an abrupt halt upon realizing the whole second floor of the prison had been caved in here, and turned into a new hallway.

Changeling ran ahead of Hiela, trying to stay alert for any foreign objects that could be a potential threat. Suddenly, he was jerked back. He transformed back into a human and gagged as he felt the thrust again. He fell forward, leaving Hiela speechless as he writhed on the ground, being dragged back and forth. She looked around, desperate to find the cause of Changeling's pain.

"What's wrong with you?" She asked pleadingly, leaping to his side. She felt a pull, and suddenly she was being dragged away, but nobody was touching her. She gasped upon realization, and Changeling registered the idea at the same time. "Juliet!" They gasped.

The shadow-manipulating H.I.V.E. agent smirked, and took form before them, holding the necks of their shadows in her palm. Her outfit was new; a dark brown dress that hung above her knees was dotted with skulls. Her hair was cropped short, giving her an aggressive appearance as she glared down at the Titans. Her voice remained a hissing whisper, though, which she proceeded to speak in.

"My name is Silhouette now. You'll do good to remember it." She snapped, swinging their shadows around. The two Titans were pulled against the wall, gasping for breath. Changeling faced her, and tried to get a kick at her, but she disappeared below them, back into her shadow form.

"We can't beat her like this." Hiela panted as Silhouette strangled Changeling's shadow, causing him to loose his breath. Changeling nodded, and looked at the ground. "Use your shadow." Hiela instructed, and stepped onto her own shadow form.

Silhouette was stuck under Hiela's foot, so she stretched away, elongating her form. Changeling pounced, but instead of landing on her, he landed a bit in front of her. He steered his shadow so that it landed over her, and a resounding _"oomph"_ was heard.

Another crash around the corner was heard, along with a call from Chameleon. The two titans used their shadow to grasp Silhouette's shadow-from, and dragged her along the hall. They stopped at an area filled with fluorescent light, where Silhouette was forced back into a human form. She hissed; her entire self semi-transparent as her body took form.

"Chameleon, sta-" Silhouette planned on warning him, but Changeling clamped his hand over her mouth. Hiela stood up, leaving the H.I.V.E. agent with Changeling. Creeping along the wall, she stood, waiting for Chameleon to round the corner.

Chameleon had no idea what to expect; most certainly not what happened next.

First, he managed to slide into a huge, freezing puddle of water that extended past Silhouette, who was held tightly by Changeling. Chameleon tried to reach out to her, but only managed to start tumbling in the water-that-wasn't. The slippery mess caused him to ram at full speed into a wall of ice head first.

Then, after managing to sit up after the smack into the wall of ice, he hit his head again on the ice. To his surprise, he was now locked inside a box of the frozen water. Hiela was on the other side, squatting down. She tapped the ice, causing it to become even colder inside. Blood trickled from his forehead, proving he hit the ice hard.

"You've got to be_ shitting_ me." Chameleon hissed, wiping the blood away. Hiela looked back at Changeling. From inside the box, he couldn't understand her, but quickly got her drift when Changeling dragged his teammate towards him. Next to him Hiela was already crafting another freezing cage. He narrowed his eyes at her.

Changeling, holding Silhouette by the scruff of her shirt, dragged her into the box. The girl tried to fling herself out, but met a block of ice, much like Chameleon had, except this was hard enough to knock her out. She slid to the bottom where she laid crumpled; curled in a fetal position and holding her head.

Hiela leaned against the wall. "All we have to do now… is find Caluori." She muttered, looking up at Changeling. He nodded, then looked up, sniffing the air. His eyes flashed precariously.

"Careful, Hiela. Someone else is close." He muttered, moving so he stood in front of her protectively. His eyes darted around the hallway, lingering on the ice boxes before glancing back at Hiela. She looked back at him, worry visible in her eyes. He smiled to calm her down. "Don't worry, it could just be a mouse."

She looked at him, smiling to hide her worry. "Don't try to reassure me, Changeling." She said, sighing ruefully. Suddenly they heard a steady clatter of boots running through the halls, and both turned to face both directions of the hallway, back to back. "Who is it?" Hiela whispered, her knees bent and ready to run- or fight.

"There you are! What part of_ stay together_ don't you understand!" Roman appeared, leaping onto the ice boxes containing two of the HIVE agents. His eyes scanned the insides before jumping down and moving the box containing Silhouette into a brighter-lit area. Hiela and Changeling let out a simultaneous sigh of relief, and leaned on each other for support.

"Oh, it's only you." Hiela whispered, shaking her head. Roman glared at her from beneath his hood.

"Robin was calling you back. You both didn't respond. Are you deaf?" He snapped, and continued past them. Changeling glanced at Hiela, shrugging, and took her wrist softly, urging her to follow Roman.

"Sorry. What's going on?"

Roman glanced at Changeling, shaking his head. "Flare is unconscious. Tempest is suffering serious wounds, and Robin is stuck outside trying to protect both of them- and he's worse off than all of us. I'm supposed to run through these halls and secure the remaining prisoners. Not that it'll do a lot of good. More than half of them are long gone." He muttered the last part of his comment, but both of the Titans behind him heard it, gasping.

"Half?"  
"You've got to be kidding me," Changeling said, his voice a little above a whisper. "We had the area secure. Everything was going fine!" Roman glanced back at him, shrugging.

"That was before Tiempo got loose." Roman glanced down the next few corridors, occasionally lifting his hand to seal off potential exits. He turned back to Hiela, frowning. "You could help, you know. I saw the ice-walls you did back there." He added, then continued.

"We should split up. We'll cover more ground that way." Changeling offered. Roman, to their surprise, nodded. Hiela stopped, looking down a hallway.

"Are you sure?"

"It's not like you're going to be ambushed. Everyone with a brain left this place ages ago. Caluori's presence is long gone, and so is any other H.I.V.E. agent; that is, except for those two you took care of. The only threat that's still here is Tiempo, and he's fighting outside with Ro…" Roman trailed off, turning around.

"What is it?" Changeling asked, stepping back to guard Hiela again. Roman glanced at this act of protection before focusing on Tiempo.

"He's in the prison. I don't get it. Why would he come back?" Roman thought, pulling his hood down. Hiela's eyes widened in fear.

"Oh! That means that he must have gotten away from Robin. What if he's hurt?" She asked; her eyes wide. Roman frowned, his brow furrowing. He stopped in his tracks, and turned, then stopped again.

"Argh!" He growled, turning to the wall. His hands were clenched into fists. "This is idiotic. It doesn't make any sense! How the hell did those first people get out? Caluori couldn't have opened so many of the cells at one time. The only people who have access to do that are the…" Roman trailed off, refusing to finish.

Changeling looked up, his eyes wide. "The overseers." He said; his voice quiet. Roman looked up at him, shaking his head slowly.

"We can't be sure. I'm going to keep sealing off the prison. You two go find Flare and the others and make sure they're all right." He commanded, running his hand roughly through his hair. Hiela and Changeling turned to go. Changeling reached out to take a hold of Hiela's hand, but she stopped, and turned back to Roman, who was still standing.

"What about Tiempo?" She whispered. Roman hesitated in answer. He pulled his hood up and turned around.

"Try to avoid him. **_Do not_** fight him- we can't afford to loose another titan when it's down to us." He said, emphasizing his words. With that, he proceeded to continue down the hallway, and then vanished from view as he turned a corner. All the clue they had to that he was still actually in the prison was the shriek of unsuspecting villains who'd come across him.

Hiela sighed. "Changeling, it's my fault! I shouldn't have separated from the others. What if… oh God, what if they're dead?" She asked, her voice a constricted whisper. Changeling turned, and took a hold of her shoulders.

"Don't say that. They're tough! They aren't dead. Say it!" He said, desperation causing him to shake her slightly. Hiela merely nodded, and whispered his command. "We're going to go back. We're going to save them, and then we're going to get everybody back where they belong- in this prison. Besides, me and you already got two back." He said with a slight laugh.

Hiela didn't return his smile.

Sighing, Changeling released her, rubbing her arms softly. "Sorry. It's something I get from my mom. Wild emotions and stuff. She says it'll be the death of me." He muttered, and turned away. He started walking and Hiela followed, staring at the floor.

"Changeling… do you really think the overseers actually let these people out?" She whispered, hurrying to fall into step beside him. Changeling glanced at her, shrugging.

"It's not like they've done anything to show we're welcome."

"Yes, but would they put everybody at risk just to show their hate for us?" She asked, looking at him with a pained expression that made him take her hand.

"We'll find out soon enough." He whispered. With that they continued in silence, retracing their steps to find the exit. They passed by the ice boxes holding the two shivering H.I.V.E. agents without a glance at them, and continued farther, listening to their steps echo in the almost-empty prison.

The two Titans were at the entrance when they heard it- the moaning of their comrades.

Flare was on her side, lying beside Tempest. Tempest had a bandage stretching down from her arm across her stomach in a diagonal line. Blood soaked the cloth, a thin line that marked the cut exactly. Her tousled hair disguised any further injuries. Flare's eyes were closed, and yet a dark bruise was stretching from her chin to her temple. Blood trickled from her forehead.

Robin was by far worse off. His costume was stripped in several places; below his left leg was entirely bare of clothing. Instead, cuts and bruises covered him. He was on his knees before the girls, panting, his hands on the ground before him.

"Oh, wow." Changeling whispered, shocked, without better words to say. He left the entrance of the prison immediately and sprinted towards his leader. Robin groggily looked up, and Hiela noticed that his mask was sheared in two, half on, half off.

"You're okay…" Robin muttered, slouching forward. Changeling kneeled beside him, turning him over.

"I wish I could say the same for you. Tiempo did this? By himself?" He asked, bewildered. Robin shook his head, then nodded and propped himself up on his elbows. Changeling forced him down. "Stay there, we'll get an ambulance.

His comment caused Robin to shoot up straight. "Arrgh!" He moaned, his hand clenching his head. "No! They … they were in on it." Robin whispered, leaning forward so that his head was in his lap. His cape was severed, leaving view for a trailing slice across his back. Hiela took in a sharp breath as she kneeled beside him and eased him back.

"We can't leave you this way. You have to get medical attention." She coaxed him into seeing the reason in her words. Robin still defiantly shook his head.

"They'll kill us." He whispered hoarsely. "Get us to… to…" Robin trailed off, his face pained as he took a breath. "Tower."

Changeling frowned, shaking his head. "If you say so, Robin." He transformed into a pterodactyl. "Can you get them on my back?" He asked Hiela, his voice a shriek. Hiela clamped her hands over her ears before he could finish, nodding.

Before she could lean down and get an arm below Robin's neck, a loud, piercing yell reverberated from within the prison.

"_**NO!**"_

Hiela stood up and gasped. "Roman!" She called, and turned towards the prison. Changeling transformed back into a human and looked down at his teammates. "We can't leave them here… I'll get Roman, you stay with them." He said, and proceeded to go.

"No, Changeling, let me. You're stronger. If civilians start to arrive and really do want to hurt us, you can defend them better than I can. In fact, take them back to the tower. Hurry." She insisted and proceeded into the prison. Changeling growled, and reformed into his dino-bird self.

"Stay safe." He called to her, his voice mangled due to his form.

Hiela rose her hand in acknowledgement and entered the jail wearily. She heard the sounds of a battle echoing through the halls. Her weary steps increased as she heard a victorious laughter drift through the hallway, followed by more grunting, cracking, and yelling.

Hiela traced the noise quickly, worried about the only other Titan available. Lucky for her, the fight was coming to her. Tiempo burst through a wall that had been half destroyed, which immediately crumbled around the three people in the area. Hiela gasped and rounded a corner, watching Roman step out through the opening. His fists were clenched and his cloak was discarded, left behind during the battle. A bruise was vibrant against his neck; giving hint that he'd probably been strangled with the cloak.

Roman's boots crunched the rubble beneath them as he made his way to Tiempo. The blond teenager was on his knees, gasping, holding his stomach. Blood splattered onto the floor when he coughed, yet Roman was far beyond mercy. He grabbed Tiempo by the collar of his outfit and pulled him up. Hiela stepped around the corner and presented herself in full view.  
"Roman! Don't kill him!" She commanded, walking closer. The dark teen glanced at her then back to Tiempo, his grip remaining, shifting to his neck. "Think of your future Roman! You'll be no better than him!" She said, anxiously wringing her hands. Roman's eyes lightened until they resumed their blue color. He glanced at Hiela and sighed, dropping the teenager.

Tiempo gasped for breath, and scooted back, looking at Hiela. "Hey kiddo." He called to her, smirking. Roman stepped away, giving Tiempo access to attack.

Which of course, he did.

"Thanks for the distraction!" He added, glancing once more at Hiela before pouncing, kicking Roman back through the opening he'd made. Roman's body smacked into the concrete wall opposite theirs, where he slid down to the bottom, remaining unmoving.

Hiela gasped and moved forward. "Roman! Tiempo, you conniving- you… you…" She drifted off as she approached Roman. The teen's body was slumped forward. She turned and glared at Tiempo, an icy fog appearing around her fists.

Tiempo held up a hand, bowing his head a bit. "Chill out, kiddo. I just wanted to talk to you without anybody else listening. And since our current guest is incapable of… well, anything at the moment, I'll start the conversation." He said, grinning slyly.

Hiela looked at him wearily. Her fists lessened until her hands were by her sides, and the icy air vanished. "What do you want?" She asked, sparing a glance at Roman. He appeared to be out cold, but with him, things never seemed to be what they were.

Tiempo watched her, his eyes going up and down her in a scrutinizing inspection. "I want to help you, remember?" He said to her in a silky voice. He approached her, and Hiela stepped back until she was against the wall. He stopped, frowning. "Hiela, I can help you. I'm just going to need your help, too. Don't you want your memories? I can give you your life back. You just have to trust me." He said, stepping forward again.

Hiela looked away from his bright blue gaze, shaking her head. Tiempo frowned, walking closer. Hiela's hands pressed back against the wall, yet he continued, then rose a hand to cup her cheek. She winced visibly. "Shhh," Tiempo reassured her, "I'm not going to hurt you. Look at me." He whispered, nearing his face to hers.

Hiela's fear-filled blue eyes stared into his, and she took a breath. "I'm going to help you, alright? Just get me into the Tower, and we'll get my staff. I'll show you everything. Trust me." He said, taking his hand from her chin. Hiela stepped forward cautiously, her thoughts racing; as well as her heart. She didn't trust him, not one bit, yet he wanted to help her. If he could, everything would be back. No more blackness when she called up a memory…

"No... I can't do that..." Hiela said firmly, glaring up at him. He frowned, crossing his arms.

"Don't you want to know what your life was like? Your family? Your friends?"

"I have friends..." She looked down at Roman, still unmoving against the wall.

"You really think they are your friends?" Tiempo asked, glancing momentarily at the dark teenager. He watched Hiela, feeling her hesitation, and watched emotion flicker through her face.

"_This isn't a time for daydreaming!"_

"_Hiela, you need to pay attention! We can't do this with three Titans."_

"_There you are! What part of stay together don't you understand!"_

Tiempo could see the unsure look in Hiela's face. "See, kiddo, they aren't your friends." He whispered softly, his voice alluring.

Closing her eyes and bowing her head slightly, Hiela thought, _'They don't want me around... It would be better If I left... But if I had my memories...'_ Hiela looked up at Tiempo_. 'Maybe I could find my old life... My family… perhaps I had some friends...'_

"I- I'll...-"She paused, looking away, "I'll help you." She said in a voice that was barely a whisper. She felt something stir below her, and glanced down. Roman's eyes were still closed, yet she was sure he had moved…

"Then let's go." Tiempo said, sliding his arm around her. Hiela's eyes widened and her cheeks blushed a light purple.

"What're you-" She was cut off as Tiempo took her into his arms and sped away from the dark teenager beside them, surprisingly fast and agile for carrying a girl in his arms.

"First we'll lay low for a while. Then we can visit your tower and get my staff. And…" he stopped, and reached into her belt. Her eyes widened and she almost shrieked until she realized he was just reaching for her communicator. "This'll have to go." He stated, smashing it on the floor.

"Hey!" She objected, and proceeded to get out of his arms. Tiempo shifted her again, and they were off. "No, let go of me!" She cried. Tiempo frowned and finally exited the prison.

"You're coming with me, end of story." He hissed, all the while continuing into an alley. Hiela took a breath to scream, but he stopped, let go of her legs, and pushed her against a wall, cupping his hand over her mouth. "Welcome to my part of the town." He smirked, and then ripped off the sleeve of his costume. The girl began to raise her icy fist, but he merely grabbed it. Hiela froze her hand over, causing him to let go for a moment. But Tiempo quickly reacted again. Hiela's eyes widened as she struggled against him, then coughed as he gagged her. "Mmm! No!" She gasped, but he dragged her to her into his arms again, and entered the backdoor of a building, turned, and locked it.

"Now let's talk about how we get in the tower…"

_T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T_

Roman struggled to his feet. He leaned back against the wall and looked upward; his eyes closed, and released his held breath. "Great. Just great." He muttered, and turned to the hallway. He started walking to the exit, hopefully to where he could help Changeling get the others home.

The two-faced conspirator would have to wait.


	6. Chapter 6

Teen Titans: Revolution

Chapter 6: Wasted time is a costly mistake.

Roman stumbled out of the prison, his pant- leg catching on stray rubble. Prisoners leered at him, yelling profanity and taunts. Roman ignored all this, his mind focused on one thing:

The team.

Half of them were debilitated, one had gone with a villain after only 3 days of being on the team, and the other was currently best friends with that one. Roman bit his tongue; he'd have to withhold information on Hiela for as long as possible to keep Changeling with him. There was no way that in his state he could transport all the Titans to the tower; besides he'd never had enough practice. And in their injured states… they just might not make it in one piece.

Looking up, Roman scanned the area. Already vans approached, heavy with cameramen and reporters. He twitched. Those people may have well been responsible for what happened. Jump City wasn't taking to their teenage super-heroes lightly. The dark-haired teen shook his head; he was at a loss to why they weren't.

Changeling was already flying around the area, circling around Flare, whom he had left on the ground. He cawed out to Roman as a pterodactyl, and then replied in a couple words Roman barely depicted as human, "I can't carry them all. Get Hiela and let's go!"

"Hiela will be preoccupied for a while. Let's get the others to the Tower. I'll tell you later." Roman replied ignoring Changeling's suddenly frantic flapping.

Hissing, Changeling consented and turned towards the Tower, flying high over the reporters stepping over the rubble. One of them caught Roman while he was hefting Flare up, and immediately began a babble of questions.

"So, my dark friend, how many villains did you let go by?" He smirked. Roman turned to him, glaring, his eyes filled with hatred.

"Let's get some things straight," He hissed, stepping forward while pulling Flare's arm around his shoulder. "I am not your friend. Nor did _I_ let _any_ get away. _You _released them. It's your own fault that they once again clot your streets with crime," Roman scowled, glaring into the reporter's eyes, "I would sleep with one eye open from now on."

"Is that a threat?" replied the brave, though strongly intimidated reporter. The cameraman tapped him on the shoulder, followed by pointing at the red button.

"We're live, sir," he whispered the reminder. The reporter waved his hand in ignorance.

"Not a threat," Roman said coldly, "An offer. I'm here to protect this city, remember?" With that, Roman teleported with Flare, still limp, to the Tower. Changeling was pacing through the infirmary while Tempest and Robin lay on opposite beds. Roman came in, still pulling Flare along, and stood before a bed. Pulling her into his arms, he softly deposited her on the white pillow before turning to Changeling accusingly.

"Did you stabilize them?" Roman asked. Changeling flushed, shaking his head, and immediately went to Tempest. Peeling back her bloodied bandage, he reached for another. Roman inspected him before turning to Robin.

"I can't concentrate, Roman! What happened to Hiela? Why isn't she with you? What happened with Tiempo? Was that you yelling?" Questions poured from Changeling, whose hands were shaking so badly that he couldn't wrap Tempest's wound correctly.

"Give me that." Roman hissed, pushing him aside, though not unkindly. He worked in silence then turned to Changeling. "You've got to give me your word that you'll stay calm and not run off." He said, glaring into the teen's violet eyes.

Changeling hesitated, and then nodded. "I swear it." He squawked. He squared his shoulders, bracing himself for whatever the blue-eyed teen before him had to say.

Roman shrugged, then turned back to give Tempest a painkiller, injecting the needle into her upper arm. There was a pause before he spoke again.

"Hiela left with Tiempo."

Silence followed this. Changeling then snorted, followed by a quick eruption of laughter. He slumped back against the wall, a stream of sniggers pouring from. Roman continued working with Tempest, softly taking her silver, waist-length hair from beneath her. He glanced at Changeling to see if he had composed himself.

Changeling had. He was now looking at Roman incredulously. "You're serious!" he blurted, pointing openly at Roman. Roman's brow lifted, and he nodded slightly, applying a bandage to Tempest's forehead. He shifted so that he was facing Robin, and sighed.

"I doubt she was in her right mind. Tiempo had just beaten me and was filing her with lies." He said reluctantly. Changeling continued to stare at him, open mouthed.

"But… that's nothing like her…" He whispered. Roman narrowed his eyes at him in annoyance.

"You barely knew her. How could you say something about her?" He asked, frowning.

"I don't have to know her to see her." Changeling retorted. Roman's frowned deepened, and he returned to fixing Robin up. After a moment of silence, Changeling stood up and walked to Flare, checking her pulse quickly. His focus wasn't there, Roman could tell.

Changeling's hands drifted from Flare's injuries and hung limply at his side. Roman sighed, shaking his head. "You've got to focus on these three, Changeling. We'll find Hiela- one way or another she's bound to show up," he said, disregarding the fact that they might be _fighting_ her soon, "But right now, I need your mind focused on helping," he said, firmly.

Changeling took a deep breath, held it, and released it slowly. He paced for a moment, then took up beside Roman and began bandaging their leader. After an hour or so of silence, Changeling spoke up, scoffing.

"To think… I played the Gamebox with him only a few hours ago…" His face was disbelieving as he gently released Robin's battered arm. Roman frowned, his concentration set on Tempest.

"He'll be fine. He's got Tameranian endurance in him," he turned and walked to Tempest, who was stirring. She groaned, her hand rising to her chest, then her head as she opened her eyes.

"Oooh, I ache. Everywhere…" She muttered her vision hazy as she looked up at the bright white lights of the infirmary. "Here again?" She questioned softly. Roman swirled into view as she focused, then blinked again.

"Stay still," he said, pressing a hand to her forehead. Tempest leaned down again, her vision spinning.

"What happened? Is Robin okay? That jerk got me while I was trying to help Flare…" Tempest hissed, her eyes narrowing. Roman frowned, glancing back at the still unmoving Flare. Changeling momentarily looked up from disposing the last of Robin's torn costume. Ryand'r twitched, his eyes opening.

"Wha- Why do I feel so … cold?" He asked, pulling the covers tighter around him. "_Sechcr!_ I'm not wearing anything!" He blurted, blushing furiously. He sat up, and then sank back down. "Ouch- Ah!"

Roman looked in his direction, sighed, and looked away. "That's not _entirely_ true."

Tempest was blushing; her face turned away from the bed two spaces away from hers. Changeling took a cloth from the many cabinets in the room and offered it to Robin, looking downward at his feet.

Robin looked at him, frowning. "What is it? Do I look that bad?" He asked dejectedly. He looked down at himself, half-covered in bandages. Roman turned to him, shaking his head.

"Your mask was ripped off." He said bluntly, then moved to Flare's side. Robin exhaled sharply. He pushed Changeling's hand away, shaking his head.

"That's not important right now. I need to get in clothes and start tracking the-" he paused, looking down at himself. "I can't do anything like this...," he scowled, "Where's Hiela? She can organize a scan with Changeling." Robin announced, running his hand through his lank hair.

Changeling winced at her name.

Roman glanced up from his spot, now against the wall. "Hiela left with Tiempo. I don't think she was under the best influence, though," he added, feeling Changeling's depression wash over him. Roman suppressed a gag at the strength of the emotion.

Robin gaped at him. "Hiela? _Hiela_ left?" He asked shock apparent in his all-too-visible eyes. The three conscious titans refused to look him in the face, their loyalty giving him privacy. "But…," Robin found himself at a loss for words, and instead, slowly slid out of the bed, the covers draped about him. Roman and Changeling stood up straight.

"You shouldn't be moving. Leave this to us," Changeling said, taking Robin's arm. Roman nodded in agreement.

"Let go of me. I need to get dressed… and think," Ryand'r spoke sharply, pausing for a moment. "Roman, can you get me to my room?" Roman nodded and he continued, "Since Tempest is awake, she can notify us-," he suddenly broke off, turning to Tempest.

"_X'hal_, Tempest, I forgot! Are you alright? Did the bandage-,"

Tempest spoke up before he could finish. "I'm fine, Robin. I can watch Flare," She said, her face turned from his gaze. Robin nodded, crossing his arms and bringing the sheets closer to his almost- bare body.

"Good. Changeling, I want you to go upstairs and start the computer scan. It shouldn't be too hard. Just…," Robin drifted off, pressing his knuckles to his eyes. "Ugh… click the button…," He drifted off once more, this time tipping forward precariously. Roman reached out, confused as to what to do.

"Room!" Robin blurted strictly. Roman nodded and in a flash of black, he teleported them both upstairs. Changeling glanced at Tempest, who was struggling to sit up.

"Does anybody here ever listen to Roman?" He asked, walking over and gently pulling the covers tighter around her. Tempest grimaced, then consented, allowing herself to lay down.

"I've got to watch Flare though…" She muttered. Changeling shook his head.

"She shouldn't be up for a while. Took a hit to the head," Changeling bonked his own head lightly in a joking mimic, then proceeded towards the door. "I'll be back once I'm finished." He watched Tempest nod, then left.

He broke into a run quickly afterwards.

Sprinting into the living room, he leapt over the plush sofa and swerved into the computer seat to the right of the living room. He glared down at the keys, then up at the screen, totally lost as to what to do. Frowning, he reached for the mouse and clicked on the link to files on the Titans themselves. Frowning, Changeling followed a myriad of links until he found 'location'. Grinning, he followed that link to transmitters, then found a map.

With a squeal of joy, he leapt up, madly clicking the print button. The map held the Titans locations, transmitters not only in their communicators but on their belts, and in Tempest's case, her earrings. Changeling didn't question how the transmitters had been placed; he was just thankful they had been. Instead he rushed out of the room-

Right into Roman and Robin.

The three boys, in a tangle, feel to the floor, both Changeling and Roman trying to break Robin's fall. Ignorant to his injuries, their leader stood up, tearing the pages from beneath Changeling. The map on the wrinkled paper had ten dots in the tower; two different types of transmitters. One transmitter, a blue snowflake, was blinking at the city prison. Another one, a darker blue snowflake, was near the outskirts of downtown.

Robin inspected each closely before pivoting on one foot to face his comrades, sitting up on the floor, Roman glaring at Changeling, who was too excited to care.

"I found her!" Changeling quickly informed Robin, bouncing to his feet. He pointed at the paper. "We need to go there now, she could be in danger," He said, eager as a puppy.

Robin looked at him, mask replaced, in shock. "Are you insane? I can barely move my arms. This will have to wait until Flare wakes up, at the least. She can help you and Roman locate her. Me and Tempest can't leave the Tower in our conditions unless we want to get killed."

Changeling frowned, a wrinkle appearing as he drew his brow together. "So… we're not going after her?" Roman crossed his arms, blowing his hair from his eyes with a resigned puff.

"Not anytime soon." He answered for Robin, who was shrugging reassuringly. Changeling gaped at the two, disbelieving.

"We're going to leave her with Tiempo? A bad guy? Does _bad idea_ ring any bells?" Changeling cried, his voice rising to a yell. Roman shook his head in aggravation.

"Have you even stopped to look at the others? Robin's wearing pajamas, for Azar's sake. Flare's been knocked out, Tempest has a gash from her shoulder to her foot, me and you are exhausted. There's nothing we can do except wait."

Changeling took a moment to glance at Robin's loose T-shirt and sweatpants, frowning. "I'm not tired. Time isn't something we've got- Tiempo's in control of it! I'll go after her!"

"Not alone you won't. That's an order." Robin snapped, leaning against the wall for support. With Roman and Robin glaring at him, Changeling's defiance soon swindled into nothing but stubbornness. "Get some rest. We'll talk about this later," Robin continued, his mask veiling his closing eyes. "I'll be at my room if you need me."

The two teens watched him go, sluggishly turn a corner, and then reared on each other.

"We have to go get her! We're both capable of doing it!"  
"Robin told us to get some rest! Frankly, I could use some. There's no point in going to get her if she left of her own free will!" Roman replied hastily, his hand rising to massage his brow.

Changeling's eyes narrowed. "If you wont' help me I'll just go alone!"

Roman opened one eye lazily. "Is that so? I dare you to take a step out of the Tower." Roman said, clasping Changeling's shoulder harshly.

The green teen felt a tremor run through him, and gasped slightly. "What did you do!" He snarled, baring fangs that weren't human. Roman pushed him away lightly.

"Stay in the Tower. Don't find out." He replied icily, leaving Changeling in the empty hallway. He hissed a strangled, animal-instigated cry that was all he could reply.

"Smug, quiet, stupid, bossy…" Changeling twitched as he made his way to his room, clutching his belt tightly for lack of anything better to do with his nervous hands. Changeling threw himself onto his bed and thought. There had to be a way to get to Hiela… and a way to make sure the others weren't left in danger…

_T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T_

"Tiempo, open the door." Hiela repeated the statement, her voice monotonous, for what seemed like the billionth time. The same, stoic reply drifted to her from behind the locked door.

"No."

Hiela drummed her fingers on the floor, brushing her hair back. She had two hours. Two meager hours to think of a way out of this mess before he'd make her break them into the Tower.

She repeated her question.

"No, shut up!" He finally lost his temper, and sent a barrage of curses at her. "You wanted to come here!" he cursed, "You asked for it, and agreed to it! Now shut up about it, because these are the consequences!"

Hiela clamped her mouth shut, blushing. The accusations were one hundred percent true. She brought this mess upon herself, now she had to dig herself out-

Alone.

Frowning, she crossed her legs. The small room was more a water closet than anything else. She felt around for anything and found a metal pipe. Trying once again to tug at it, she failed, and let her arms fall limp at her side.  
"Changeling, I'm so sorry…" She whispered to herself. She pressed her palms to her eyes, then continued repeating the names of the Titans. "I won't let him get to you guys…" She swore, and crawled to her knees.

Looking around at the pipes, she searched for a source of water. Ice was useless here; Tiempo left the heater at a moderately hot temperature. Anything she crafted from ice melted, and became a puddle of useless water. She sighed, continuing a stream from her palms until she heard Tiempo scowling. The water was drained out the crack at the bottom of the door, so the blond villain was aware of her persistence.

"That's it. Screw the cover of darkness, we're leaving now." Tiempo roughly pulled open the door and yanked Hiela up. Covering her face with a warm towel, he caused her senses to become slothful. As she struggled to remove the towel, he managed to tie her wrists with another warm strip of cloth, and then proceeded to drag her through the doorway.

Hiela, strangely, didn't react.

'_The sooner I get to the Tower, the more reinforcements I get. I just won't let him past the door.'_ She repeated the thought to herself. Hopefully this idea would work.

Hopefully, hope would be enough.

_T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T_

A dragging impression was the first thing Flare felt. _'Wha-,'_ she felt Roman's presence, a persistent nagging pulling at her consciousness.

"_Will you get up already?"_ his voice suddenly filled her senses, worry under-toning the annoyance in his voice. Flare shook her head wearily, and felt a searing pain rip through her skull.

Suddenly she remembered.

The thief, desperate to get away, had bashed the side of her head with the side of his empty gun. Knocking her into kingdom come, he managed to get away, and give her a nasty headache.

"I'll get him back," She murmured, her lips moving. The titans in the room gave a sigh of relief upon hearing her. Tempest's voice became apparent, and slowly, Flare regained consciousness.

"…- all thinking you wouldn't wake up," Tempest shivered, the thought of death frightening her, "Roman was concentrating so hard… and you were just… lying there…" Tempest refused to go on; instead, she pursed her lips. Flare's eyes remained close, but she grunted in response.

Roman eased back in his chair. "I hate healing." He muttered, clenching and unclenching his fist. Flare struggled to rise up onto her elbow, then winced, feeling the right of her face burn with pain. Roman leaned forward, one hand raised to help.

"No, you've done enough," She said, eye twitching. Finally, she closed her right eye, a grimace visible through her gaze. Roman raised his hand, placed it behind her neck, and turned her face towards him.

"I hate healing, but it doesn't mean I won't do it," He said, cutting her off before she could repeat her previous rejection. She tried to lean back, but only managed to get Roman to his feet. Placing his other hand on her bruise, Roman sat on her bed and concentrated once more, ignoring pangs of pain that sparked from his chest.

Surged with power from Roman, Flare straightened up, then roughly pushed his hands away from her, blushing slightly. "I'm not invalid, Roman. My body can heal itself." She snapped. Roman scowled, his mental link with her opening.

'_I'm trying to **help** you.'_

"Flare, he's only trying to help. You should let him; he's good at it. Look, he made that cut nothin' but a scratch," Tempest suddenly interrupted them, causing the two to break their glare. The silver-haired teen squirmed under their gaze until Flare let out a sigh and leaned back into the firm cot.

"Fine." She muttered, turning to face Roman. He glared down at her through his dark bangs.

"And why should I?" his brisk retort was interrupted by Robin's voice.

"Because I said so. Is Tempest okay?"

Roman shrunk into his seat, bangs now veiling his face. Tempest sat up, pulling her feet over the side of the bed.

"Perfectly fine and ready to go," she said, pointing down at the off-white line down the back of her arm. "Roman said that should go away too, so it doesn't bother me. What should I start with?"

Robin paused, glancing at the overly-hyper teen. "You're… sure you're okay?" He asked, facing her. Tempest blushed, her smile dwindling.

"I've been stuck here twice already. I'm not going to let this City step all over me." She hissed, clenching her fist and holding it up. Robin's mask widened at the edges, surprised by the sudden attitude change.

"For one, you could help Changeling out. I don't know what he's up to, but whatever it is, keep it and him safe." He said, smiling at her returning energetic state. Jumping out of the bed, she walked over to Robin.

"You really should keep the pajama outfit. It's better than those Christmas-colors." She whispered, nodding solemnly. Robin looked down, surprised, then met Tempest's gaze.

"I can't battle in this." He said simply, shrugging.

"You shouldn't have to battle wearing an old style," She said, smiling. Leaving Robin to ponder this, she left the room, and bounded up the hallways in search of her fellow green-comrade.

Ignoring her statement for the moment, Robin continued towards Roman, who was sitting cross-legged on the seat beside Flare's bed. Flare's pose was similar, arms crossed as she lay down. The bruise across her temple, mottled yellow-purple only a while ago, had reduced to a small patch of black and blue around her cheek bone.

Sighing, the leader settled in between the two. "Should I even ask what's wrong with you two? Flare, he was just trying to heal you, and Roman, Flare was just being… well, herself-," Roman interrupted, sending out a stream of accusations about Flare, most of them relating to her stubbornness. His opinion was silent though, a whisper lost in the wind, so Robin continued, "You two are going to have to learn to get along even if it kills you. Roman, finish healing her and meet Tempest… wherever she is and get her and Changeling to the living room. I'll arrange a search. We –you guys- can find Hiela and see what her intentions are."

After a pause, Flare spoke up, "You aren't coming?"

Robin shook his head, crossing his glove-less arms. "There's no point in fighting when I'm… in this condition." He said, glaring down at the ground. Flare glanced at him before maintaining her stoic manner.

"So get Roman to heal you."

"He tried. It's something about my genetics that won't allow anything but normal healing," Robin replied, sighing heavily. Roman glanced up, uncrossing his arms.

"I… It's not like it's your fault," Roman said reluctantly, unaccustomed to giving out reassurances. It seemed, as of late, that he'd been forced to do it a lot.

As of late was only three days.

Robin frowned, turned and pointed at Flare. "Well what're you waitin' for? Heal her already," He said, taking Flare's wrist and pulling her up into a seated position. She yelped, her hand rising to her head.

"Oh, oh, oh!" She bit her lip, eye twitching, and refrained from cursing. Her narrowed eyes turned to Robin, and like a madwoman, she clenched her fist, "You did that on purpose," She accused, reaching out to grab his shirt by the neck and strangle the leader.

Roman took this moment to reach out, clasp her face in both his hands, and finish the healing in a matter of seconds. Flare pressed her hands to her face between Romans', and gasped. Sucking in another curse, she opened her eyes and felt the side of her face, pushing Roman's hands away. He stood up, rubbed his hands on his pants, and turned.

"Wait, both of you," Robin said, blushing furiously, when Flare jumped off her bed to follow Roman. The two teens turned to face Robin, who shuffled his feet. "You know what Tempest said earlier about… the Robin costume…-,"

He was cut off as Flare scoffed. "Sorry to break it to you, but it was entirely true. You look like a stoplight. Besides, you shouldn't be walking around in your dad's clothes. It's not his team anymore. It's yours," With that, she turned, side-stepped Roman, and left the room, rubbing her head.

Robin glanced at Roman, who shrugged. "Appearances aren't important when fighting unless you need stealth," was all he said before leaving. Robin frowned. After a moment, he slowly followed the others.

Finding all the titans situated at the living room, Robin sighed in relief. Tension was obvious near Roman and Changeling, who were both glaring at each other.

Without a doubt, the others knew Roman would win this glare-off.

Flare sat at a computer, her elbows lightly placed before the keyboard. One hand was still at the side of her face, another was tapping the screen. Robin was close to snapping at her for it until he saw the computer was operating before her touch. Tempest was standing beside her, one gloved hand on her hip, another twirling at her waist-length hair. Occasionally, she tapped the screen too, battering Flare's hand away. More then once, she reeled away as Flare's hand burst into flames, annoyance visible on her frowning face.

Robin walked up to them, peeking over Flare's shoulder. A map was on the screen, a blue snowflake flashing occasionally. "Is Hiela's position secured?" He asked, leaning farther over Flare. She shook her head, tapping another quadrant on the screen to zoom in as the snowflake changed positions.

"No. She's moving. Probably in a vehicle. Her speed is too fast to be on foot. The computer predicts her coming to the cove our garage comes out of, primarily, directly to the Tower secondary, and to Jump Studios as its alternate course. Tempest thinks she's going straight to the Tower. I doubt it. It's too obvious."

Robin nodded, his hand rising to his chin. He closed a fist, pressing it to his lips in thought. "Changeling, Roman, come here," He paused as the two shuffled over, Changeling finally breaking the glare with a bored-looking Roman, "Both of you were listening… good. This is what we will do. Roman, you are situated at the evidence room. Regardless as to what happens, don't loose the _ekar'dan_ staff," the Titans' faces contorted, confused at Robin's choice of words. By his expression, it wasn't a good one, yet he continued, unfazed, "Flare is going to stand guard at the hallway; Tempest is blocking the staircase leading to the hallway. Changeling, you're staying in the elevator, and leaving that post means preparing yourself for a course worthy of a Tameranean Olympic," He ignored Changeling's cat-like hiss, "I'll be in the garage. Unless Hiela comes with Tiempo, I don't want Flare or Tempest to leave their posts. Roman, your staying situated like Changeling."

Roman turned to Robin with shadowed eyes. "It's a given that Tiempo's going to be with her, Robin. If she had been coming of her own will she would have notified us," he remarked, his face expressing exasperation.

Robin twitched. "It's always a possibility that she was kidnapped-"

"I was there, Robin. She went with him. Freely." Roman interrupted.

"You were unconscious," Changeling hissed.

"How the hell would I tell you she left with him in the first place if I hadn't been conscious?"

"Zip it, all of you. Robin, your plan is fine other than the fact that we can't have our weakest teammate fighting, possibly, both intruders. Switch places with me or Tempest, but putting you at front line is idiotic." Flare said, turning in the revolving seat. Tempest nodding, her silver gaze setting on Robin. He frowned, glancing from Tempest to Flare.

"Fine. Flare, you stay at the garage. Tempest, guard the hallway, I've got the staircase," Robin reluctantly changed the plan, turning towards the door.

Changeling frowned, crossing his arms. "You shouldn't be fighting at all," he said under his breath. Robin turned back, mask narrowed.

"This is a serious situation. I'm going to fight. Get in your positions in two minutes," With that, he turned, leaving to his room to prepare.

As Ryand'r left the hallway, he never regretted more that he had only inherited Tameranian looks.

(A/n, he has to work for his tameranian strength. B)

Roman was the first one who moved after Robin left. Gently rolling Flare's chair, with her still seated in it, aside, he started tapping at the computer. "Estimated arrival is in eight minutes. We have two minutes to get ready. I'm going to say something Robin didn't- do not hurt Hiela," Roman's comment surprised everyone, especially Changeling.

"Wh… what do you mean?" Changeling asked cautiously.

"I mean what I said. Don't hurt her. Tie her up, don't listen to her, don't speak to her, don't reason with her, and don't hurt her. Just get her out of the way," Roman responded monotonously. The titans glanced at themselves until Tempest spoke up.

"And if she attacks?"

Roman looked at her, exasperated. "_Then_ you take her down."

Flare stood up; pushing the seat in. "I don't particularly see why we're taking commands from you, but since they make sense, I'll do it. We'd better get moving." She said. Tempest and Changeling nodded in agreement to the latter part of her sentence, biting their lips to hold back smirks at Roman's annoyance. They both headed to the elevator. Tempest would ride it up, then leave Changeling as she entered the hallway to the evidence room.

"Splitting up is a stupid idea," Changeling scowled. Tempest glanced at him as the doors closed, shutting off Flare and Roman; Flare headed down the stairs, Roman still standing behind the computer.

"I think it's a good idea. This way, you won't get distracted, and the staff is always protected," Tempest replied matter-of-factly as she tapped the button for the 9th floor. Changeling clamped his mouth shut, crossed his arms, and leaned on the corner of elevator, waiting for Tempest to leave.

When the doors dinged open, Tempest stepped out, and Changeling quickly pressed the door close button. She glanced back and saw Changeling glaring out at her from the closing doors, and frowned.

"Yep. Definitely a good idea."

Flare walked towards the staircase. She didn't bother waiting for the elevator; Changeling wasn't someone she wanted to listen to right now. And besides, Roman was the last person she'd want to be stuck with in a room alone, regardless of its size.

"Flare, wait a second." Flare heard Roman's voice, heavy with a mixture of annoyance and fatigue. She reached for the door, planning on ignoring him, but stopped. Sighing, she turned around, finding herself face to face with him.

"Oh," she whispered in surprise.

They stayed still for a moment until Roman sighed, turning around. "Forget it," he muttered. Flare took a deep breath, looking away. Rolling her eyes, she turned back to Roman, who was headed towards the elevator.

"I'm sorry, alright? I shouldn't have snapped at you, I was mad about earlier. Happy now?" She said in a single breath, and turned to the door. Roman glanced behind him, but she had left, the door swinging behind her.

Roman shrugged, thinking_, "Not what I was going to say, but okay,"_ With that he teleported himself up to the evidence room.

Flare jogged down the stairs, muttering to herself along the way. "So don't hurt her, but don't let her pass. Knock her out without injuring her. Tie her up so she won't get away. Wow, this is getting easer with each passing-," Fare reached the bottom of the steps, "Step…,"

She paused, biting her lip. "And of course, fire has to deal with ice. Whoever said fight fire with fire is an idiot." She muttered, glancing up. The beginning of the tunnel was filled with hanging ice crystals. They were scattered, as if there had been a fight earlier. Flare gulped before stepping forward, relying on words Robin had given to her.

'_You must be somewhat resilient. You survived the water didn't you?'_

She squared her shoulders and continued walking, her senses alert. The ice slowly dripped around her, and then she caught it, farther into the Chunnel.

The sound of ice crashing against the walls, cries from a girl being hit, grunts from a guy. Flare narrowed her eyes and ran forward, almost slipping on the ice before reaching the fight.

Hiela was hiding behind a wall of ice on Flare's side of the Chunnel. Tiempo was behind it, panting, leaning over. Flare hesitated before lifting her hands to Hiela's back.

"Put your hands where I can see them!" She commanded shakily. Hiela turned around suddenly, spreading her arms wide.

"Flare! You've found me! You won't believe how-," Hiela was cut off when Flare lit her hands, fire and heat causing Hiela to shuffle backwards. Flare awkwardly stepped back, as if she didn't want to cause pain but wasn't going to be caught off guard.

"F…Flare, it's me… I stopped Tiempo from coming. I made a mistake, I'm sorry," Hiela said, backing into the wall of ice she was maintaining. Flare shook her head, shrugging.  
"You made the mistake, not me. I'm just trying to keep another one from happening. Put your hands in front of you and … uh, well keep the ice wall up. Please." She added, flushing slightly. Hiela sighed, consenting. Glancing behind her, she noticed that Tiempo had vanished. She pivoted on her foot.

Flare had taken this as an attack and ducked, squeezing one eye shut as she aimlessly blasted fire. "No, Flare!" Hiela squealed, ducking the flames. The ice melted into a wave of water, one Flare quickly evaporated. Hiela rose to her feet, searching for any sign of Tiempo.

A flash of white costume was all she saw, being washed away by the water Flare had missed, water that had been all the ice behind them. Hiela started running towards Tiempo, but was intercepted by Flare.

"Flare, now isn't the time! Tiempo is- What're you doing!" Hiela gasped running back a few feet. Flare created a wall, a solid, rock wall, by bringing up and locking into place lava. As it cooled off, Flare turned around.

"Sorry about this, Hiela. I have my orders." With that, she ran off in Tiempo's direction, sprinting at her limit to reach up with the white blur that he was in the distance. Flare caught up with him, but Hiela couldn't see what was happening- or who had the upper hand.

"Oh, Flare, this is so ridiculous." She scowled softly, shaking her head as she piled ice onto the opposite side of the wall. When it was cold enough, Hiela tried manipulating the ice into water, to wash it all away, but her thoughts were too focused on anger. She couldn't make anything good come to mind. She bit back a sob and rested her palms on the solid sheet of ice.

"Come on. Come on! Melt!" Her anger turned into frustration, yet she couldn't get the ice to melt. "No... He'll kill them all," Hiela whispered, her fists clenching. "I won't let that happen," She stood straighter, "Get a hold of yourself. You can't loose another family, no matter how new… or deranged," Hiela firmly told herself, pressing her palms to the ice.

"Now, melt!" Hiela commanded. The ice shattered into miniscule cracks, splitting, then becoming a drenching, cold wave of freezing water, filled with frozen lava from Flare's wall.

Hiela didn't take pride in her accomplishment. This was another mistake to her- if Flare was still down there, fighting Tiempo, she'd probably just caused her failure. Sure enough, she heard a yelp, followed by Tiempo's increasingly annoying laugh.

As Hiela broke out of the Chunnel at a trot, and saw Flare standing on top of the black T-car. She was shivering madly, but her fists held weakly flickering flames. Her drenched hair was plastered to her face as rivulets of water streamed down her cheeks. Hiela bit her lip, brushing her white hair from her stress-ridden eyes.

"Flare, I'm sorry! Don't worry, I'll stop Tiempo. You need to trust me!" Hiela called out to her, sloshing over in the ankle-height water. Flare shivered, and directed her fists in Hiela's direction.

"G-g-get down!" She blurted, blasting a river of flame in her direction. Hiela leaped forward, falling to her knees, the fire barely singeing her hair. Hiela's face dunked into the icy water, and she crawled forward, her head rising slightly.

Behind her, Tiempo dodged the weak river of fire, kicking up water to extinguish it. The flames grabbed a hold of his costume, though, so he was knocked into the water with Hiela. Sputtering, Tiempo patted at the fire at his leg, and rolled in the water. Plumes of smoke rose from his legs as the flames died, causing him to go into a fit of coughing.

Hiela jumped to her feet, waving away the acrid smoke, and headed towards the car. Flare had jumped down, or fallen, and was now struggling to rise. As Hiela approached, Flare positioned herself again, only to moan in pain as smoke instead of fire streaked from her hands. She leaned against the car, slowly lifting her soaked pants from the water.

"Hiela… behind you, pay attention," She pointed, sliding away. Hiela's eyes widened in surprise; Flare was warning her!

"Does this mean that-," She began to ask if she was back on the team, but remembered the warning, and swooped down to her knees.

Not a moment too soon. Tiempo's fist rammed through the space above her, and without anything to stop him, he toppled forward, tripping over Hiela. He scowled in aggravation, and crawled away, towards the door. Flare looked up, staggered a few feet in his direction, and fell to her knees, shivering.

"Hold on!" Hiela cried, clasping her hands together. She spread them apart in a fast, sharp motion, and the water parted, splashing on opposite walls. Flare remained still, her body moving only with shivers.

Hiela proceeded towards her, but Flare leaned forward, pressing her head to the floor. "Go after him… I'll be fine," she gasped, wrapping her arms around her stomach.

Hiela nodded, and turned to go, glancing back only once. Flare had reached around to the back of her belt and was pulling out her communicator. Probably warning the others about the change in plan... Whatever it was wouldn't matter at the moment. As long as Tiempo was after the staff and in their home, nothing mattered.

Hiela ran into the hallway, and continued past, ignoring the elevator and proceeding up the winding stairs. By the looks of it, Tiempo had decided to take the elevator, as it was supposedly on the 4th floor.

Hiela tried to remember the layout of the tower. Her memory wasn't ever good, whether it was for short or long term items. Yet she remembered the evidence room was… on the… well, she would find something indicating it. Hopefully…

Shaking that from her thoughts, she focused on continuing up the hundreds of steps she was to climb. Sighing, she lifted her heavy, tired legs again, falling into a rhythm that became so automatic she didn't even realize she had been moving.

Hiela was panting, resting when Robin dropped in on her, dressed in green sweat pants and a tank top, his utility belt slung haphazardly on his hips. Bandages were visible on his bare arms, and his mask was snugly in place. "Robin!" She panted, stopping. As she did, her strength left her, and she fell to her knees.

The pressure of meeting her leader face to face after leaving with a villain got to her, and she let out a sob. "I'm sorry, Robin. I am _so_ sorry. You don't know how hard this is for me-," She was cut off when she heard Robin pull something from his belt. She looked up, and saw a grappling hook, fully extended, being wrapped around her.

"Regardless of how you feel, I can't let the others be jeopardized by your potential danger," Robin replied, almost automatically. Hiela stuttered, then quickly calmed.

"I deserve this. And again, I'm sorry," She whispered, leaning forward so that her blue-highlighted hair hid her face. Robin ran a hand through his hair, a nervous habit he had become accustomed to a long time ago.

"What happened to Flare?" He asked, ignoring her pleas for forgiveness. Hiela paled, leaning farther forward. Robin bent his knees so that he was level with Hiela and placed his hand under her chin, and angled her face so she was facing him.

"I need you to respond to me. Now isn't the time. What happened to her?" He asked softly, taking his hand away. Hiela frowned, flipping her hair back with a slight tilt of her neck.

"She's in the garage. An accident happened. I didn't mean to-," Robin coughed, interrupting her again, "Oh, right. Well, she was stable when I left her. And Tiempo has taken the elevators to the evidence room. He knows his staff is there. I had to tell him… It was-," Robin cut her off again, shaking his head, "Oh, sorry. He wants the staff to control your births, and change them so they never happened. He can do it, too. It's terrible." She said, her voice declining to a whisper.

Robin blinked behind his mask, disbelief spreading over his mind, numbing him. "Well, in that case, we can't just sit here. I mean, you're going to have to stay, the other Titans wouldn't trust you at the moment… except for… I mean, just stay here." He said, and then turned to go.  
Hiela looked up at him, shaking her head. "Do I have a choice?" She sighed, "I'm not going to sit back and watch things happen anymore." She whispered, crafting a knife-like projection of ice in her hands. She watched Robin climb up a flight of steps and turn into a doorway. Her hand slid upward, the bindings slowly being cut.

"It's my fight now."


End file.
